2 minute read
\Ithys to cut credit card losses
r PPROXIMATELY 500 million credit cards are in Acirculation in the United States. In 1983 ll0 million bank credit cards fVisa and MasterCard) were used to buy $150 billion in goods and services. The average American carrid six piees of plastic entitling him to credit.
Unfortunately this surge of plastic buying power has created a new type of criminal-the person who makes purchases using a st6len credit card. Clever crooks with the help of careless clerks and cashiers are obtaining thousands of dollars worth of merchandi$e for which merchang are unable to collect.
Home centers are not exempt from this type of fraud. In an atternpt to solve the increasing problem of credit card fraud as well as bad checks, shoplifting and refund victimizing, home center managers throughout the country are banding together into security associations. They find that this cooperation allows them to share information and solve mutual security problems.
Crime prevention and law enforcement officials have compiled a list of habits and practices often identified with the user of a stolen credit card. They have distributed these lists to stores, urging managers to alert their employees to be aware of telltale behavior. Clerks as well as cashiers who note suspicious behavior are instructed to report the incident ts the manager immediately.
Story at a Glance
Credit card lraud steals millions of dollars .oommon operallng charactedstice identify trierns ionre center managec bard togffiI to solve problems, increase protectlon.
Since credit card purchases under a certain dollar limit are not verified in most stores, users of stolen cards are careful to avoid making purchases over the allowed amount. The individual doing this may be observed to rnake a purchase, leave the store, and then return to make another purchase, often going through another cashier's line.
Customers who buy indiscriminately also are suspect as are those who buy expensive items with little thought or carry a oedit card in a pocket. Teenagers with credit cards and those who "left their ID at home" but have a credit car{ also arouse suspicion.
Managers involved in security organizations have discovered that the same individuals work more than one store in an area, For example, in one city merchants uncovered a scam of dishonest shoppers payng for merchandise with bad plastic and then returning the merchandise for cash refunds after altering the sales slips to indicate a cash sale. Thae refunders were hitting all the home centers with the same operation. Scurity eleerts determined that they were obtaining thousands of dollars in fraudulent returns in a few months of operation
Another comrnon problem surfacing was the failure of cashiers to compare the photos on driver's licens€s offered as identification with credit cards althoWh they wrote off the identification numbers. It was discovered that in some states it is easy to remove the original photo and replace it with one of the persan carryrng the stolen identification.
How You GanRecognize , The Credit CardCriminal
BE ALERT FOR:
r The customer who makes indiscriminate pwchases without regard to size, style, color, or price.
o The customer who questions the sales clerk about the f loor limit or who makes several individual purchases that approach but never exceed the floor limit.
r The customer who is unnecessarily talkative or who delays a selection repeatedly, until the clerk is upset.
o The customer who hurries a clerk at quitting time.
o The customer who purchases a large item such as a color television console and insists on taking the item with him instead of having it delivered.
r The customer who refuses alterations on wearing apparel even though the alterations are included in the selling price.
o A customer making purchases, leaving the store, and returning to make additional purchases.
r A customer who does not appear to be well dressed, but is purchasing expensive items.
o A customer who pulls the credit card out of his pocket, not his wallet.
r The customer who tells you that he does not have a driver's license. or that it is in his car.
Suspicious teenagers attempting to use a credit card.
r The customer who presents temporary driver's license (no photo).
WHEN SUSPICIOUS: o Call for an authorization, indicate your suspicions and follow instructions.
