Reader broncobiker sent us the photo at left, wondering whether check acceptance policies might be getting a little out of hand. But checks have so much potential for fraud, and so few shoppers use them, that many merchants have just stopped accepting them entirely.
Diesel, True Religion, Ed Hardy and Lululemon Athletica are among a growing list of stores that don’t accept personal checks.
Gap Inc. has tested the idea. Austin-based Whole Foods Market is trying it out at a few stores in California and Arizona. The organic grocer hasn’t come to any conclusions yet, a spokeswoman said.
Check fraud is a costly problem for the retail industry, and stores just don’t see many shoppers pulling out a checkbook anymore.
Predictably, the use of checks increases with age. Only 0.3 percent of shoppers between ages 18-24 predict that they will write any checks to retailers this holiday season, while 9.8 percent of senior citizens (people over 65) plan to.
Do you still use checks when shopping? Do you still write personal checks at all?
Personal checks becoming currency of holidays past [Dallas Morning News] (Thanks, Geoff!)
More From Consumerist
-
12.8 Million Americans To Get Health Insurance Rebates
-
Airlines Mishandled Fewer Bags Last Year Maybe Because We Hate Paying To Check Them
-
Why College Isn’t Always A Good Financial Investment
-
Student Loan Bubble Eerily Similar To Subprime Mortgage Debacle
-
Path Texts And Calls Everyone In User’s Address Book About Nonexistent Photos At 6 A.M.
I haven’t written a check in at least five years, and really can’t think of any reason that I would want or need to. I don’t understand why anyone uses them anymore for anything.
I still write checks for rent and a couple of monthly bills that I can’t pay online. I can’t remember the last time I used a check while shopping.
When I worked at a K-Mart even 3 or 4 years ago, hardly anyone wrote checks. And the majority of those that did write them wound up being fraudulent.
i dont understand why anyone still writes checks. its the dumbest way to pay ever.
I can’t remember ever using a check to pay for something in a retail store, and I’ve had a checking account since I was 17 or so (I’m 37 now). I’m still using the box of checks I got when I opened my most recent account, in December 1999. I pay all my bills online through my bank, who will send a paper check to anyone who doesn’t take EFT’s.
I haven’t written a check in just over 5 years.
I have no problem when a retailer refuses to take my check. I just buy the items somewhere. I don’t want a check card and I don’t want to pay for something with a credit card if it isn’t being ship to me. I don’t want to be treated as if I don’t have money when I write a check. Our banking system has so many flaws and retailers have countless issues in handling people credit cards and debit cards that I wouldn’t allow anybody to access to my bank account or pre-write a check for me. I had my local Pizza Hut to refuse to take a check when they were going to delivery at my home. I try my best not to order out because I don’t care too much about eating other people cooking. It was pass eight in the evening. I was kind of upset but I went to Bi-Lo and got me a two steaks and a bag of potatoes for less than what I was going to pay to Pizza Hut. Of course, Bi-Lo did take my check. I wrote a comment to Pizza Hut and Thank them for saving me some money that evening and plus for having a better meal. Since it was late in the evening, the butcher was marking down meat. I have to remind myself to go at night to get better cuts of meat. The next time that I called Pizza Hut, they offered to accept my check before ordering. Retailers, before you start refusing checks, you need to have the product that nobody else has to claim that right because I will politely put my wallet back into my pocket and drive down the road to buy it somewhere else. You may think that you are making me feel inferior by refusing my check but you are really giving me the opportunity to find something better down the road than what you are offering. Retailers have to recognize that they aren’t the only one on the block selling that same product.
@bohemian: Same issue here… It’s just obnoxious. Although they do allow students to bring large amounts of money to school for payments, there’s no way I want a $300 sports payment hanging out at a high school campus.
@StanTheManDean: Specialty retail. More precisely, dog dresses.
@h3llc4t, breaker of office dress codes: . . .dog dresses?
@treimel: For paying rent, using online bill pay is the way to go. You just put in your landlord’s name and address, payment amount, and for your “account number with biller” just put in your address if your rent isn’t that formal.
Then the landlord will get a check in the mail. Every bank’s online bill pay lets you do this. Plus, it saves you the cost of the stamp, and if the billpay check gets stolen, they don’t usually have your real account number. Plus, if you’re so inclined, you can set up autopay and forget about paying your rent.
My bank (Schwab) deducts from my account after the check is cashed, but my old one (Citibank) deducted the money as soon as they sent the check. YMMV.
I’m currently 100% automated (I don’t pay any bills). All my bills are charged on my cash back credit card or from my checking account where that is the only option, and then the credit card is auto-payed-in-full every month.