Transaction Fee? Really?

We all need to make a buck don't we? You get your hourly pay, or you get your sales commission, or if you own a company then you strive for profitability. If you're a kid you do your chores. Or if you're an American, then you can always count on the government to bail you out for doing nothing! But there's some things that just upset me when I see a little inconsistency.

I use my debit card about 95% of the time. Dining, clothes, groceries, gifts- it's the ultimate way to keep your hands clean so that you don't have to be fiddling with cash. I know there's a fine line between debit and credit cards- especially when one can be used for both purposes, but it is very convenient. But did you know that vendors in many cases get charged a transaction fee for accepting plastic? It's how the transaction companies make a buck- I get it. But do they jack up the price accordingly to cover that fee? Actually, in some cases they do. I remember buying furniture once and they told me they'd cover the tax if I paid cash vs. credit. So in essense they were charging me less to avoid that cost that they'd have to bear. But they didn't give me a total and then tell me it would be more if I paid with credit. And besides- this was not a chain furniture store it was some boutique mom and pop shop. So how they keep their books is fine with me as long as I got what I needed at the price I wanted.

But what really irks me is when big chain companies charge you a transaction fee for buying with debit. Two cases in point are Carls Jr. and AM/PM. Now I haven't been to Carls in a while but I remember actually avoiding that place just for that reason- unless I had cash- but it always chapped my ass to only eat there if I had a ten-spot in my pocket. But AM/PM- I just went there last week.

I live in Arizona and used to live in California so perhaps you don't have this company where you are. It's essentially a big convenience store that also sells gas- the brand of gas you ask? Well it used to be ARCO and still has that label but that's now owned by BP... (how timely!).

So before you get your gas, you put in your card and they warn you that they're going to charge .45 cents to use your debit card. 45 cents divided by 20 gallons is 2.25 cents per gallon- so since their prices are about 3 cents cheaper than their competition in many cases it's no big deal right? Right? WRONG!!!!

Why should they and only they charge this stupid fee in the first place? I'll tell you why they shouldn't.

1. More pay at the pump activity means decreased staffing needs. Less employees means less payroll. Pretty simple
2. More pay at the pump activity means fewer accounting errors. Humans make mistakes and clerms might give the wrong change or accidentally accept counterfeit money
3. I can't imagine the staff at a convenience store making a ton of money so you have the risk of employee theft- the more cash transactions, the more cash on hand
4. Along those same lines, more cash on hand means a higher likelihood of robbery which would mean increased security measures and associated costs.

So by accepting debit in a seemless personless transaction, the company benefits- thus justifying the transaction fee that the processor takes! And I don't even work for one of these companies or any other interested parties. I'm just a dope who sees a ridiculous policy carried out by a very very large company!!!

But anybody who's ever bought gas there knows about this charge so when they drive by and see the price per gallon which is a few cents cheaper than the Chevron across the street then they already know the game. I flat out avoid AM/PM/ARCO/BP exactly for this reason... unless I'm out of gas and there's nothing else around which then fuels my anger and makes me write about it!

Here's another bone of contention regarding this recent experience.

When I was done, the machine then told me "Out of paper, see attendant" Are you kidding me? Don't they get notified when they are out of paper? Now I need to walk into the actual store to get my receipt? Add to this the recent BP spill in the gulf and there's no wonder why I'm the only guy in the parking lot! And another thing- I get in there, tell the guy that I need a receipt on 12 (his nationality is unimportant), and he asks me "How much was it?"

"REALLY? YOU NEED ME TO TELL YOU HOW MUCH IT WAS SO THAT YOU CAN PRINT ME A RECEIPT? YOU THINK I'M TRYING TO PULL SOME CREDIT CARD FRAUD USING THE LAST 4 DIGITS ON THE RECEIPT? YOU THINK I MOVED MY CAR AND SOMEONE ELSE SUBSEQUENTLY PUMPED GAS ON THE SAME PUMP IN YOUR EMPTY LOT AND I MIGHT ACCIDENTALLY GET THEIR RECEIPT? JUST PRINT THE VERY LAST RECEIPT FOR PUMP 12!!!!!!!"

alright, maybe I didn't need the quotes on that last part. I'm not sure how to emphasize what goes on in your mind.