As Andy Rooney might say “Do you ever wonder why it cashiers ask you to sign for most credit card transactions? They never actually do anything with those slips of paper except file them somewhere, do they? It’s not like there’s an army of Martians comparing the signatures to anything on file somewhere. So why bother?”
Apparently, someone did has wondered and has apparently done some market research to see how absurd his signatures could be before anyone raised a concern. Disclosure: I did not vet this to see if it is for real, but I can tell you that I totally buy that someone could absolutely do what this guy did. Plus, it’s laugh out loud funny. Yes, Zeus has shopped at Trader Joe’s.
Enjoy The Credit Card Prank.
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When I was working retail, our store had a digital signature pad. And the people who pitched a fit about me checking their ID and holding their card until they signed were usually the ones who signed the pad with an X or a line.
Be kind to the retail slave. They might be your kid’s teacher or your healthcare advocate…
Please note I didn’t say ‘might one day be’, but did use the present tense.
@Mary Sue: My experience is that you were an exceptional retail employee. Most cashiers either don’t check the signature at all or only compare it to what’s on the back of the card. (I can count on one hand how many times I’ve been asked for ID for a credit card transaction.)
So the only thing a cashier is really doing is seeing how well I can match my signature to the one I (or someone else, if it were a stolen card) had previously put on the back of the card. Maybe I’m off, but if you’re going to try to steal and use a credit card, couldn’t you also look at the signature? How hard is it to copy most of them to be somewhat reasonable?
Be kind to retail employees? Amen! I spent plenty of time as one. Of course, you could add most humans to the list of those we should be kind too, except maybe for telemarketers who are somehow exempt from the do not call list.
I actually had my ID checked a few days ago when I was doing some holiday shopping with my credit card. Since it was the first time in recent memory that has happened, I thanked the cashier for requesting to see my license.
She told me they get a lot of kids coming in to the store with their parents’ plastic — so I’m not sure if they have a policy in place for everyone as a result or she just thought I was using someone else’s card!
Credit card debt is a very big problem that is being faced by a lot of people who have been irresponsible and undisciplined in the use of their credit card.
Elenora
@Elenora: Fact.
I once signed with Plato’s name, using Greek characters.
And there’s no such thing as responsible use of a credit card.
@Daniel/Plato: Awesome – thanks for stopping by (and providing the chuckle).
I only remember being asked for my ID a couple of times. If I’m in a hurry, I just “sign” with a wavy line, which isn’t too far from what many signatures look like anyway. If I’m in a good mood and the waiter/waitress/cashier was pleasant, I sign with a smiley face. Nobody seems to mind or care.
Even if they don’t check your ID, the reason you should sign your name is in case of a dispute. At work I had to respond to an Amex chargeback from an disgruntled customer. She lied on her chargeback inquiry, and our policy is all sales are final. I had the copy of the credit card slip that she signed as evidence that she purchased the item in person and was notified that all sales are final. On the flip side, if you are a victim of fraud, it can help the investigation if they can access the sales slip (signed by the person who stole your card, but which would be forged since the salespeople rarely check ID’s!).