Graham Nye wrote:
On 25/02/2012 14:13, wrote:
On 24/02/2012 23:00, Adam H. Kerman wrote:
I have no idea if a PIN would be required if you swiped [a UK-based
credit card] at a US retail terminal.
No, UK credit cards also have a magnetic stripe on the back, so they can
be swiped through a US retail terminal. You just have to sign on the
transaction, rather than use your PIN.
Only if, as above, the transaction is above the merchant's floor limit.
When using my UK credit card in the US I only needed to sign for some
transactions.
That depends on the merchant's policy.
The occasional machine, e.g. at gas stations, wanted to know my home
zip code (which, of course, I don't have) but I was able to pay in
the kiosk. (US gas stations need payment before dispensing fuel,
rather than afterwards, as in the UK.)
Depending on a merchant's policy, forcing a purchaser to enter a
bit of identifying information, like the ZIP Code, isn't much
security. If one's wallet has been stolen, there's likely to be
something in it with the ZIP Code on it.
With regard to paying before versus paying after to dispense fuel,
that's up to the merchant. If the gas station is on a main highway
and the merchant assumes that most drivers filling up will be coming
from elsewhere, the policy will likely be pay ahead. If the merchant
assumes that most of his business will be from people who live close
by, with plenty of repeat business, he'll allow pay after.
The thing is that the merchant really wants to the driver to enter
the store to buy food or coffee or cigarettes, which are very high
markup items.
At times, merchants make nominal profits on gasoline. I don't know how
fuel prices are set at retail in the UK, but in the US, the refinery
effectively sets the price, not the merchant. A fuel truck will supply
numerous gas stations on its route, each paying a different wholesale
price for fuel. Refiners use a complicated pricing model based on income
of nearby residents and assumptions about local traffic versus long
distance traffic at the pumps. Generally, if the area near the gas
station is middle class instead of upper middle class, fuel prices
will be lower.
Also, fuel sold to the merchant is measured crudely (no pun intended).
The fuel truck driver takes a dipstick to measure the height of the fuel
in the underground storage tank. It doesn't appear to rely on gauges
on the truck itself.