Credit Card Transactions 101

[qwertyy]

Sometimes the two slips have different versions of the card number (xxxx xxxx xxxx 1234 on the customer copy), so it matters a bit more for the restaurants to get the copy with the entire number.

We talked about this in the credit card thread. I was under the impression that it's illegal to print the entire number on a reciept.

[Eric Ziebold]

anybody that's seen don's signature I'm sure will vouch for the chaos that it can cause.

[deangold]

The copy needed is the one with the tip AND the signature on it. If there is no tip copy left, there is no way the restuarnant can collect on the tip if the charge is later disputed.

[mame11]

I have noticed a disturbing trend lately. According to my credit card statements I am a terrible tipper. That is, the tips I leave when I use my debit card don't compute at least 50% of the time. I am perplexed over the situation. This seems to be a recent phenomena but I noticed it again today when I looked at my online statement and the tip from lunch yesterday was not included in the bill from the restaurant.

Am I missing something? I hope I am because I will feel like a heel if no tips are actually being left when I use my card.

P.S. When I have cash I like to leave the tip in cash...

[Ferhat Yalcin]

everybody should calm down and not check the either credit card or debit card statements online in 3 days. try it after 3 days and you`ll see every transaction correctly.

[mame11]

Cool. I'll try to remember to go back and check to see if the amount has been corrected. Thanks!

[Destruya]

Yeah, this happened with my last trip to Ruths Chris. Our waiter was excellent and I credited him a 25% tip. But the website showed my card had only been charged for the price of the meal. It corrected after a few days' time, which was nice since I was about to call them and make sure the guy got his tip.

I was convinced it was my fault because in the confusion after the meal I accidentally wrote down the wrong total on the restaurant's copy of the check, and worried that because I did that, they couldn't give the guy his tip for fear of having the charge disputed.

[edenman]

AFAIK, this is because the credit card company generally pre-charges your card when the authorization goes through, and it's not until the restaurant's copy is processed that the credit card company (and thus, the online statement) is updated on the actual amount. Since some restaurants don't process the slips until really late at night, it might take a day or two for this to update.

This tends to also be a big source of customer complaints since sometimes the credit companies will authorize an additional amount for tip automatically. So if a table is splitting the bill, somebody who charged $20 on their card might be pre-authorized for, say $23. Customer sees this on their bill and angrily calls up the restaurant. Hilarity ensues.

Somebody who works in a restaurant can no doubt correct my details on these, but that's what I understood as of my last bar job.

[deangold]

I've heard many complaints from business owners about the difficulties of dealing with AmEx and getting paid in a timely fashion, but I don't have any first-hand knowledge of that.

My Visa Mastercard transactions from Sunday night (posted on Monday) will be in my bank account on Wednesday. From Amex on Friday.

[kwhitney]

I can't believe the responces to this topic. Itis outrageous behavior and should be illegal. It is a great comment on our congress that they are brave enought to deal with printing on receipts, but avoid restricting banks from helping themselves to our cash.

Why can the system authorize deductions in seconds but take days to make the adjustment? The answer is obviosly profits are taken on the float.

But, if I go to a vendor, am presented with a bill, pay the requested amount, and see that my account is billed for more than I signed to pay, I will complaint to the vendor that I transacted with. And I will demand he process the proper amount imedaitely. And it will get ugly.

[Al Dente]

I can't believe the responces to this topic. Itis outrageous behavior and should be illegal. It is a great comment on our congress that they are brave enought to deal with printing on receipts, but avoid restricting banks from helping themselves to our cash.

Why can the system authorize deductions in seconds but take days to make the adjustment? The answer is obviosly profits are taken on the float.

But, if I go to a vendor, am presented with a bill, pay the requested amount, and see that my account is billed for more than I signed to pay, I will complaint to the vendor that I transacted with. And I will demand he process the proper amount imedaitely. And it will get ugly.

It isn't the restaurant (or other vendor) that "processes" the wrong amount, it is the acquiring bank by way of the credit card association rules. Also, you have agreed to this entire process in the cardholder agreement you signed when you signed up for your credit card. It's right there in microscopic print.

I agree with your outrage, but it's misdirected. The restaurant has no control over it.

[kwhitney]

I realized that after I sent off the message. The whole subject has got me more worked up than is healthy. It seems like a basic breach of the vendor buyer relationship.

[Miami Danny]

But it's not a breach of the so-called "buyer vendor" relationship. It's got nothing to do with the vendor, it's the credit card company. The reason Rissa started this thread to to make that fact clear. I guess she did not make it clear enough because some still don't seem to understand it.

To be clear, restaurants pay a separate processing company (not Visa or MC) to process credit- and debit-card charges. That means that EACH transaction costs the restaurant an additional 10-20 cents, plus a transaction fee of 2% or more. There may be other fees as well (swipe fees, terminal lease, monthly maintenance, etc.). This is all completely unavoidable for a restaurant, and completely uncontrollable, as well. When you pay with your debit card, the transaction may show up in your account immediately, with or without an additional 'pending' amount. That is to leave room for your tip, which is usually not entered by the restaurant until later, or at the end of the night, or even the next day (it's called 'tip adjust'). Of course the restaurant bank account does not receive the money (in most case) for 48 hours.

If you are worried about overdrawing your account, or going over your credit limit, I suggest you pay cash.

And don't blame the restaurant-they have NO choice, and they are paying for YOUR convenience (as well as SAVING you money if you're using an ATM card) every time you use a card.

[deangold]

Also we have no control over the type of card you use. If its a debit card, the fee is one percentage. If its a travel & entertainment card, it may be a full percentage point or more higher.

When you use a card, it costs the restaurant anywhere from 1.1% + $.10 to 2.65% plus $.14. I cannot predict what the amount is, I cannot give a discount for cash and I pay my waiters the tip that night and don't get the money back for 2 to 5 business days.

If I find a processor who doesn't add the tip allowance, then the tip is not guaranteed and can be charged back.

This charge is more than I pay in linens, more than I pay in insurance, more than I pay in utilities on a monthly basis. It is more than my dishwashers earn in a month.

[Sthitch]

I think that I found the ultimate restaurant buiness model, charge people twice.