A Radio Shack Manager Explains Why They Ask For Personal Info On Cash Returns
Last week, we pointed out that even with a receipt and the product in hand, and even though you purchased it with cash the day before at the same store, Radio Shack won't give a refund unless you give them your home address first. We got a lot of insider tips from former employees in the comments section, and the next day we received the following perspective from a Radio Shack store manager. We think his explanation still doesn't explain why you need personal ID to refund a cash transaction when you've got the item and the receipt in front of you, but read on if you want an unverified store manager's point of view.
I am a current RS manager in standing, so I'll renege on giving out my name, however, the actual reason for requiring names and addresses is very simple. First, it is listed on the back of every reciept. So it is part of official policy. Second, the rest of our return process is very I suppose lax if nothing else, our products may be returned at any of our stores, following simple rules that are spelled out.
Now the reason the N&A are needed is because it prevents a LARGE portion of theft which is both internal (as spelled out from one of your posters in the comments) and external such as a snatch and grab. If an item is taken from our store, a customer may attempt to return it at several locations around the city as there are numerous radioshacks around, but this is a very big issue, since beyond the name and address, we are liable on our end for issuing the customer credit for potentially stolen merchandise.
This of course is not saying that 99.999 % of our customers are abusing our return policy, but without this, because of our ability to go the extra step, and take care of you, we as a corporation must protect our assets. This also prevents smash and grabs from cars in mall parking lots, as thieves have stolen out of vehicles and attempt to return the items in the store.
The biggest misconception seems to be against a corporation protecting it's items against theft. We in no sense require ID for a purchase (barring unsigned CC purchases) but it HAS to be required since we will help you with out a reciept if at all possible. Since we as a company do attempt to resolve returns in many cases without reciepts, we do have to have some basic measure of fraud protection.
That customer more than likely could have gotten cash returned if needed without the reciept, but in common sense, a store just won't hand out money over the counter without a ticket showing why the money is leaving.
On top of that, we also need the information to verify vs the signature on the return slip, since we have dealt with people stealing from relatives it also helps during holidays where a daughter may try and return something their parents bought to the store, and if the parents come in asking, or we have some one else complaining that they were not the person returning the item, we at least have some paper work showing who did.
Oh, and as an FYI, the Name and Address is actually for warranty info since a bunch of our small parts, batteries, and such have a limited 90 warrenty. If you have like a battery blow up, we can look up your purchase and hand you a new pack. We recently started a lifetime guarentee with some of our AV cables. We have in every store on at least one register a giant 8 x 11 sign stating our name and address policy. We specifically mention the only people that have your info is the company and related parties (if you sign up for ATT it goes to ATT, if you sign up for Dish, it goes to Dish, If you sign up for Greendot prepaid, it goes to Greendot).
Once again, very basic items that have been blown out of proportion. I cannot deny that we used to years ago, but when we stopped doing it, traffic dropped due to customers no longer recieving the RS catalog (That was huge for many many parts nuts). It's a juggling act, so now we ask for it, it's not required for most types of purchases (contractual, prepaid, and service plans are examples of required), and the actual info just goes into a system that we can use to look up your old tickets if you have problems with your items. The last thing we want is to not be able to help our customer find a resolution.
Certain items like routers can be purchased at any electronics store, and then you run into the potential of having shoplifters hitting up one type of store and returning it at another. If we have the capability of preventing this, all in all, everyone can shop a little safer.
We're not sure how any of this is less complicated than keeping track of store inventory and requiring a receipt for all returns. The refund-without-a-receipt policy is the sort of goodwill gesture that this writer feels mainly benefits the careless consumer at the expense of the rest of us, so by all means, do away with it if it will bring an end to ID requirements for receipt returns, particularly for items paid for with cash.
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Comments:
So because they have no idea how to properly prevent employee theft, they need to take the information of all their consumers and coincidentally receive valuable marketing information.
Why not just give the option for people to either give their personal info or not? That's what the main issue is here.
By the way, if there's anything I need to buy at Radio Shack, I go and look for it on the internet. Much, much cheaper.
While I don't like the idea of having to surrender personal information I think their reasonableness in protecting their assets allows them to ask for it. A thief isn't probably bright enough to realize they can fake it, but I'll make up a fake address any time I have to return something (since I don't think they should get to know who I am if I used cash).
All this is true, but the biggest problem is that no matter how or when your'e asked for your name and address, it all goes in to the same system, and everyone in that system gets signed up for the radio shack mailers.
I am a former Radio Shack employee, and have seen it happen before.
I before E, except after C
It's R-E-C-E-I-P-T not R-E-C-I-E-P-T
The only people that truly seem to complain about N&A are people who have never worked in retail. They reserve their time in cushy office jobs and never truly understand the things we as retail employees have to deal with.
I had a customer get aggravated with me the other day because she believed that her N&A would be sold to a third-party company, when in fact, we have a written policy stating the exact opposite. That her N&A would be protected by the company and never sold to a third party.
Yet, in a world full of Identity Thieves and crooks, no one is willing to trust or believe anymore.
My name?
A. Customer
My Address?
Aisle 3
Radio Shack Store #?
St. Hwy. Radio Shack
Radio Shacktown, 11111
My Tel. #?
723-467-4225 (rad-ios-hack)
@Hanke: But this was in response to RS requiring ID WITH a cash receipt. I agree that without a receipt it isn't unreasonable to require ID to cut down on return abuse but that wasn't the case of the original story.
Blah blah blah justification blah blah blah whine blah blah blah excuse blah blah blah excuse to shop elsewhere blah blah blah.
I can understand requiring ID if the customer does not have a receipt, but when they do, that is all that should matter.
If some family memeber stole both the item and the receipt to make a return, that is a family (and maybe a police) matter, but should have no bearing on RS's return policy.
Asking me personal info will in no way protect your company from fraud. People who want to steal will do so plain and simple. The only people you are pissing off are your honest customers and its policies like this that keep me from shopping at RS even when I know its the only place I can easily get certain products.
I would rather wait a week due to shipping from buying it online.
Hey, if it works so well and (hypothetically) the majority of customers don't mind giving out their personal information for almost no reason, why isn't everyone doing it?
I don't think it's a case of Radio Shack being the great innovator, it's just a skeezy way of getting your marketing info. But with email, magazines, other random booths they put at sports events, etc, its never been that hard to get marketing info.
And by the way, when asked to do this by other companies that are doing give aways or similar promotions, I consistently use a fake address, dead email and a disconnected phone number. I hope they enjoy all the bounced emails and wasted mailings they get to send for asking me way to much, totally unnecessary information.
I have zero problem with a company requiring id to make a return. ( or parental id if a child bought the item).
One of the reasons it is done is in fact for loss prevention and its a common practice.
Next time you are out...take a look on the ground around almost any store you go to..especially those in strip malls that have an outside facing..its normally very easy to pick up a reciept laying on the ground.
Next step for someone to do is to go in and grab an item(s) that are said reciept.
You now have items and a receipt and can carefree return at will if not asked for ID.
Seems straightforward to me and our family at least has no problem showing ID if we do a return, not everyone is honest..and if I am signed up for a mailer..oh well ..takes only a moment to throw it away if I dont want it.../shrug
Ugh..and sorry...my 2 finger typing at lunch leads to errors lol.
there may be some validity to this.
it been years, but i know of a guy that used to work for builder's square (who was owned by k-mart). he'd steal stuff from builder's square, then return the item without a receipt to k-mart because they sold the same items. he had to fill out the forms when returning them. he ended up getting caught, and fired.
So because they don't trust their employees not to steal from them, they want me to trust their employees (that they don't trust) with my personal information?
Reason 546 not to shop at Radio Shack: treating all customers who attempt to return a cash-bought item WITH a receipt as potential criminals. Well-played!
I think its reasonable. I bet it helps prevent people from retail renting and I believe a company has the right to protect its assets.
As long as they dont start sending you garbage in the mail, there is nothing wrong with this.
I am not surprised by this at all, most of the small chain stores in malls and shopping centers have their machines set up to not return anything unless you give a name and address. I worked for Hot Topic for 3 years and was not allowed to return anything at all without a name and address. At our store though we did have a generic fake name we used for anyone who refused to give name or address.
Ironic isn't it? The store manager won't post his name or store address in defense of the policy, yet demands names and addresses from his customers.
So what hes saying is that if a store a few miles away is apparently missing something that you paid for and legitimately want to return, you are now a suspect of theft?
Good job.
If an item is taken from our store, a customer may attempt to return it at several locations around the city as there are numerous radioshacks around...
I call bullshit. If you return an item with a receipt, it is returned and that receipt's transaction ID will show it in their POS system.
At MicroCenter, 13 years ago, we were able to track purchases and returns between stores in different states. If RS still can't do this simple form of IT (among local stores at least), then they are a great example how an aging company slowly declines into oblivion.
This manager is obviously a Harvard graduate.
I don't understand how this explanation covers the original story. The original story was about a return with a receipt, the explanation is mostly about a return with out a receipt. The other part...
"On top of that, we also need the information to verify vs the signature on the
return slip, since we have dealt with people stealing from relatives it also helps
during holidays where a daughter may try and return something their parents
bought to the store, and if the parents come in asking, or we have some one
else complaining that they were not the person returning the item, we at least
have some paper work showing who did."
just doesn't hold water with me. I don't believe it's their responsibility to make sure person returning a cash purchase with a receipt is the same person who purchased it.
This is just like Belk asking me for my name, phone number, full address, and DRIVER'S LICENSE NUMBER to make a cash return with receipt. I haven't shopped there since.
I don't think asking for information is unreasonable. Besides, in any retail company I have worked for, that info stays on the form and is never entered into a database for marketing.
Don't like it? Don't buy things you don't need. It's that simple.
"We in no sense require ID for a purchase (barring unsigned CC purchases) but it HAS to be required since we will help you with out a reciept if at all possible."
That makes full sens....wait... what?
We don't require it, but it has to be required?
Seems to me they could require ID for returns without receipts, but accept returns with receipts without needing an ID. Unless they are concerned with shoplifters who also have the presence of mind to steal a receipt.
I as a consumer must also "protect my assets" so I'll take my purchasing power to another store with a less asinine return policy.
"Have a nice day, and thanks for not shopping at Radio Shack."
different store, but can someone explain why victoria's secret requires id for ALL returns, even credit card retuns? That's not the only reason I don't shop there, but it is one of them.
Why get rid of the cash return without receipt? Simply stipulate that if there is no receipt, then ID is required.
His entire explanation is less than adequate. And just because it is listed on the BACK of the receipt, doesn't mean it's enforceable. That's paramount to having a check that has ink that appears after it is accepted stating that all store poicies are null and void... The terms need to be posted and customers be able to read PRIOR to the transaction, not after...
@sleze69: And you aren't necessarily able to return to other stores anyway. I tried to return an item I bought with a check almost a month earlier (a few yearts back) and was told they wouldn't do a return anywhere but the original store, since I used a check. It didn't matter that the check had long cleared.
I encountered this at a pepboys actually. They wanted my phone number for a return. The thing is, I paid with a credit card, and I had my receipt. The cashier was one of the most rude people I've met in a long time, and when I asked about the policy, she got extremely defensive. Finally, she called the manager, who happened to be very polite and actually explained the entire policy. The gist of it was very similar to RS policy, but at the end of it he said I didn't even have to provide the info if I didn't want to. All I ended up giving them was a name and zip. Since they already had my name on the receipt, I didn't see much wrong with that.
This is just an attempt to collect private information for the purpose of turning it all over to George Bush and his hatchet team of privacy invaders. I won't shop at places that ask me to surrender my privacy.
Period.
Rules are rules kiddies. If you don't like a stores rules don't shop there. Stores are allowed to set their own rules on stuff like this, they don't even have to tell you the rules as long as they're listed in the store or on the receipt. It's the consumers job to read the rules and agree to them, which they do by making a purchase. Grow up, take responsibility for your own actions.
GO TO ANY RETAILER AND DO A RETURN... IT WILL HAPPEN THERE TOO! BB Circut City Walmart JC Penny you name it!
I'm thinking what they want to prevent is someone buying one of an item with cash, than shoplifting a bunch of the same item and returning them over and over again for cash.
It does seem like there are probably better ways to do it, like by transaction ID, but if their POS system doesn't let them do it, I can see doing it by address.
@TrinKagen: exactly. people make this out like it's a big deal. news flash: you go into just about any retailer with a return & they all ask 2 questions:
-can i have your receipt?
-can i see your license?
@TrinKagen:
Umm... no. I can do a return at circuit city, Target, Walmart, Best Buy etc and never need to give that info. The reason is simple, all those stores keep a record of your transaction. If you pay by credit, there should be no need to check that info, because there is no direct exchange of cash. With cash transactions its more understandable, but I think if there's a receipt then as long as the receipt can be clearly marked that a return has been made, no checks are needed. Barring all returns w/o receipts, while a bit draconian, I think might be the right decision as it does protect the retailer against theft and return.
I'm not really sure why people are so miffed about this. I can only surmise the luddites who cling to their cash for anonymity see this as some kind of affront to their rights. Theft is a gigantic problem for any store. Is it really such a huge onerous thing to ask for ID when returning an item? Remember that cash returns are the most dangerous for retailers because there is zero way for them to track the theft. Also thieves want money, so they're not going to try to refund it on a credit card, so you're accurately targeting your most vulnerable avenue for fraud.
To those who say "what if I don't have ID", I say "too bad". I mean unless you're under 16 in today's day and age you have to have some kind of identification. If you don't that's certainly not the retailers fault.
I think a lot of the scenarios this manager describes have nothing to do with the original Making-A-Cash-Return-With-A-Receipt scenario described.
If their concern is that some will make multiple returns on the same receipt, there are both high and low tech ways to prevent this. Many retailers bar-code their receipts. If someone is making a cash return, they can scan the receipt to verify the item has not been returned on the receipt previously. Or, after making the return, just make a note ON the receipt that the item was returned and include a date and store location. There's lots of ways RS can safeguard against fraud without violating customer privacy.
From origoinal post: "Oh, and as an FYI, the Name and Address is actually for warranty info since a bunch of our small parts, batteries, and such have a limited 90 warrenty."
This is the part I have a huge problem with. I worked for Radio Shack briefly. It was explained very, very clearly to us by our District Manager (David Goodwin who operated out of the Hazelton, PA dictrict office) at our sales meetings that the reason for the name and address was entirely for marketing purposes. Radioshack sends out that stupid junk mail flyer that no one actually wants, however, Radioshack's upper management believes these flyers generate revenue so they make us get the name and address so these can get sent out to customers who actually shop at Radioshack instead of being mass mailed. That this was the reason was covered in great depth.
It was also the single biggest problem I had with the job. Just like Hollywood Video and Gamestop do with their variosu items they have to push on customers to drive them away such as magazine subscriptions and game reservations, Radioshack tracks every associates Name-And-Address percentage and fires people who's get too low. If I remember correctly 97% was the minimum for keeping your job!
@SOhp101: Maybe they can't prevent employee theft because so many "Consumerists" work for them, and believe it is their god-given right to steal anything as long as it belongs to a company.
If the drones at Radio Shack request an address, just make one up. With very long ridiculous street names and bogus address numbers. Eventually these twerps will catch on.
Dunno about this one. If I can legitimately make a return on something I bought after I've lost (or are too lazy to dig up) the reciept, Passing my ID seems reasonable.