Stores Without Cardreaders

[Vermachtnis]

So I don't carry cash on me. At most, I have just a few dollars, everything else is in the bank. I went and got my ears lowered and when I went to pay, they said they didn't have a card reader and I had no idea what to do. I had to go next door and buy something to get money out.

So, do you carry cash on you? What do you think of stores with out card readers?

[Pant Leg Eater from the Bad World]

You got your ears lowered? What is this?

But yeah, some stores just need to get with the times already. Jeesh.

[Jess]

Ears lowered? What on earth? Please explain.

I don't really carry cash on me, so it's a real pain if I'm going somewhere without a card machine.

[Vermachtnis]

Didn't ya'll watch that episode of Doug where he got a haircut?

[Pant Leg Eater from the Bad World]

xD

I get it. I suppose I just haven't heard that expression before.

[Mirage]

I didn't even know stores without card terminals existed anymore. Well, I knew they do in other countries, but in Norway, many street vendor booths even have them, using the cell network for verifications. If it's a store in an actual building, you'd practically be losing every other potential customer by not having one.

Unless I have a very special reason to, I never carry more than 10 bucks in my wallet. I'm not charged for using my card anyway, so I use it for absolutely everything, even as little as a single pack of chewing gum. I can withdraw like 100 bucks at any normal store anyway without them getting pissy about it, and ATMs are usually not very far apart if I need more. I really enjoy not having to worry about losing more than the cost of my wallet if I lose it.

Whenever I hear stories about people losing or finding sums of money in the 100-1000 dollar range, all I can think is "why on earth would you carry that in your wallet?" If it's a really large sum, I don't wonder though, because then it's usually for shady purposes, to do things under the radar, or straight up stolen money. Not that staying under the radar or doing sensitive things is something I consider bad by default, but for normal use, I don't get why people wouldn't just use a card. It's a bit too tinfoilhat to worry that your bank can see which store you bought food at. They can't see what you bought anyway. I know it might seem a bit naive to "trust" that the banks aren't sharing this info with anyone but the police (and whatever other police-like governmental instances), but I do believe they don't think it's worth the risk, considering how much trouble they could get in if they were busted.

[Dat Matt]

I hate carrying small change on me. Bills? Great, i'll carry £100 on me no problem. £0.98 in change in my wallet. Hate it.

I tend to not pay things by card where possible though.

[blackmage_nuke]

I try to pay with cash as much as possible to keep the feds off my back but sometimes Im just lazy

[Mirage]

TINFOIL TINFOIL

[Denmark]

i generally don't carry that much cash but if i know i'm gonna need cash then i go to get cash from the cash producing machine

[noxious.sunshine]

The store we get beer at doesn't have a credit card machine, but they do have an ATM.

[Lone Wolf Leonhart]

I generally use a card. It's efficient. Instead of digging around for bills and change just swipe it and you're good to go.

I will occasionally go to the atm if i'm going to visit small locally owned shops just because I don't know if they've got all that set up. Most of the time it's not necessary. I'll take money out for things I'm paying a person directly for, such as a haircut.

[Mirage]

hairdressers have card terminals too here
like all of them

[Pike]

they do here too Mirage, I like to leave a couple bucks tip though.

I haven't seen a place without a card reader in forever. I guess when I went to get my car fixed earlier this year it was a mom & pop outfit so I had to write a check, but other than that... nope, I just use my card.

As for carrying cash... I'll usually carry about ~$20 but beyond that, nope.

[Mirage]

oh yeah the tipping business
we don't do that thing over here anyway and when we do we just put in a few bucks extra when paying with cards