I never get cash back at the grocery store any more. We go grab our cash in higher amounts now, and I will ask for change when I pay in cash. I’ll buy a candy bar or gum, or something for $1 if I can find it, and make them give me change for $100 in cash. That’s how I fight back.
Do these stores incur higher expenses they have to pay to the credit card company for the higher charges by a customer?
If so - then yeah. They have a right to charge a fee for cash back.
Besides, there has always been a fee for using an ATM machine if it’s not in your banks network.
Pay the $3.50 or don’t.
They’re a store, not a bank. I say charge whatever they want.
Or find out if your bank has a partnership with any stores. My bank has one with Publix where I shop often. No ATM fees. What’s good for me is my bank that once specialized in closing branches has a Publix one block away so if my bank’s ATM is out for maintenance the store’s is a good option.
Kroger stores in my town have been doing this for 3+ years. Locally owned grocery stores give cash back for free. Guess where I shop? Matter of principle.
Around Arkansas Dollar General will not even give cash back if they were so inclined to do so...
They are just going to be creating more work for themselves.
If I do not want to pay the cash fee then I just buy something and take it to the customer service desk and ask for a cash refund.
They could, of course, do what the gas stations do and have one price for cash and a higher one for charge.
But all of this is straining at gnats.
They are doing something that will send people to other stores if available and will result in unhappy customers where there is not another option. And then soon there will be another option.
In the 1970-80’s there was a outdoors writer for the Fort Worth Star Telegram ( Texas, y’all) named Bob Hood.
He wrote in one of his weekly columns how to purchase a new rifle with out the wife knowing.
Volunteer to do the grocery shopping on occasion and write a check for $5.00 over. Put the money in a coffee can and over a period of time, would have enough to buy a rifle he wanted and place it with his others.
*Oh, this rifle? I’ve had it for years, just never got it out.
Another step to get rid of the cash.
?? What do they mean by, cash back? On return goods.??
What is this “cash” thing y’all are talking about?
I try to pay some things in cash, sometimes you find a rare coin or bill back. Today my wife was going through her change and found a mint bi-centennial quarter. With this economy only getting worse I suspect people will resort to spending their collections.
The first time I used a bank machine was in 1984... It was free to use and the banks didn’t charge anything for the first couple of years... Then they figured it out... They started with a quarter... Now they’re charging several dollars. This used to be referred to as ‘Highway Robbery’ and that’s exactly what it is. People who provide convenience bank machines can and should charge money... When you use a bank machine at a bank, it cost them nothing and they actually save money by you using the machine... So why should they also profit from it?
Are people aware that the store pays a fee for every credit or debit purchase?
I don’t know this for a fact, but it seems logical that fee is higher when the debit card user gets additional cash with the purchase.
I know some small business that are now being forced by economics to pass along the processing fee in order to make a profit.
That cash rewards on your credit card is paid by the store. It’s not free money from the bank.
While all the vendors I use in my business accept credit cards, about half of them now charge the 3% processing fee.
When one supplier started doing that (sadly I was spending a lot of money with them and loving my 1.5% from the card company) the accounting department head told me they did an audit and found they paid $65,000 that year to the card processor. And their profit margin simply didn’t justify it.
This is economic reality. I haven’t used an ATM in 30 years and stopped getting cash back a long time also. Get $500 in 20s, put them in a file and use that as your ATM when you are short. Planning is not that difficult. If you can afford to get cash back from a debit card you can keep the same cash at home. There is no reason a business should pay a fee for you convenience.
I believe cash back was a way grocery stores used to reduce cash on hand and the amount that could be lost if the store was robbed or that would have to be handled by the armored car company.
I used to always pay in cash. I now often use a debit card. The stores probably have a lot less cash coming in nowadays.
The dollar tree store near me charges 1 dollar for cashback. It’s not new. Its been that way at that store for a lot of years now.
Kroger has been doing this for a few years now, at least. I never use that option anymore cuz yes, it is just another way to rip off the customer.
“ locations where residents can get cash out for free, the watchdog warned.”
They have put these dollar store in “towns” that are nothing but a crossroad here in central TX.
Its good for the few locals but does not make sound business sense.