Reader Refuses To Give Driver's License With Credit Card Purchase

Reader Brandon is obviously familiar with number 3 in the 10 Things You Might Not Know About Your Credit Card post, holding firm in the face of a retailer who wanted Brandon to give his driver’s license when he bought something with a credit card:

Just wanted to let you know, armed with the Consumerist and a signed credit card, I thwarted the Best Buy minions who wanted to enter my driver’s license information into their “fraud prevention database” in Virginia. When asked for ID, I pointed out the card was signed and that as a condition of their arrangement with Visa they could not demand identification. I demanded a manager who sided with me and processed the transaction without identification. Interestingly, I was not asked to sign at all (even the final receipt) which makes me less secure in Best Buy’s transaction policy.

That’s right. If your credit card is signed, retailers are not allowed to require any additional ID with your purchase. To do so is a violation of their contract with the credit card company. Violators can be reported by consumers to their credit card companies, and possibly have their accounts taken away.

With the high number of retail database breaches this year, do we really need to be giving these chumps any more of our personal information than we have to? I’d like to keep my digits out of the hands of the Russian hackers as long as possible, thanks.

(Photo: Getty)

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