Along with the poinsettias, shoppers
continue to jam the malls and
the cash register.
Cash or charge?
Even though the economy is much better
this Christmas, nonetheless, shoppers are
still tight fisted with their cash.
Twenty one even.
And that's when the charge cards come out
and slide in to pay.
Some stores are asking for more ID
to make sure the credit cards being used
are not stolen or overdrawn.
Ward's department store has gone a step
further, tying its cash registers
directly into major credit card
computers.
The credit card is checked and approved
or rejected instantly as the
numbers are punched into the cash
register. What do the customers think?
I like it very much.
It saves a lot of time.
And there they can get on
with what they're
doing and the stores like it to because
credit cards are confiscated before
they get used.
And the same goes for checks.
Stores are using telephones to access
computer checklists and to make sure
money is in the bank to cover a purchase.
The stores call it consumer protection,
but it is also protection for the stores
that during the Christmas can be hit for
millions of dollars in losses and bad
checks and stolen credit cards.
Mike Snyder, Channel 5 Action News.