Ashburn Bagel - Complaint

I've noticed that whenever we put restuarant charges on our cc with a tip - our online account shows the charge pending WITHOUT the tip, then when it clears, it updates with the tip

 

I am glad to see that others are understanding why I was upset with this practice and agree that it doesn't always happen this way. I still have a pending charge on my account and think it will be finalized tomorrow. I appreciate the comment asking if the person who said I was vilifying the store was the owner of the store. I am a smart person but I had to look up that word and when I did I thought it was a little over the top for the situation I was posting. Glad to know I am not the only one who thought this practice was unusual and not the norm in the restaurant business. Usually the charge is the total before tip that is pending and then after the tip is added I see that as the final charge. I also am uphappy with the fact the bagel shop or cc company have been holding $6 of my money for 3 days now.

Suzanne

 

Just to clarify... the preauthorization happens immediately -- before you indicate whether or not you are leaving a tip. The slip that you sign has a preauthorization on it already. When they reconcile their credit card charges at the end of their shift or whenever they do it, they'll put in the correct amount including tip. Depending on the volume of credit card business the store does, they might reconcile several times a day or just a couple of times per week.

I think different banks handle this differently and also different credit card processing companies handle it differently, which is why different people seem to have different experiences with this. There are a lot of hands in the pot so to speak: The retail establishment, the processor which the store processes credit/debit transactions with, and the bank you have a credit or debit card with. They all have different ways of handling pending charges. I'm not familiar with Ashburn Bagel, but it's possible they don't have a lot of control over how their preauths go through, even if they are different from how other restaurants handle preauths. It may have more to do with the policies of the bank or processor they use. Visa/Mastercard/Amex are probably in there somewhere as well, not to mention debit cards are often treated differently than credit cards.

Personally I never use a debit card because you do not have the same consumer protections with a debit card that you have with a credit card. If there is an unauthorized charge on your credit card, you can dispute it and not pay until the dispute is resolved. With a debit card I believe the money is deducted from your account immediately and will not be returned to you until after a dispute is resolved, and a debit card dispute is less likely to be resolved in your favor.

 

A debit Visa has most the same protections as a credit card if you are using it as a credit card.

It’s important to know that Visa debit cards carry the same protections as Visa credit cards. For example, all Visa cardholders are protected by Visa’s Zero Liability policy. This policy means you pay nothing if unauthorized purchases are made on either a credit card or a Visa Check card when you choose to sign for your transactions. Some financial institutions offer Zero Liability protections for certain PIN debit transactions as well, but the best way to ensure you are protected is to sign for your purchases. Visa’s Zero Liability policy also applies to purchases made on the Internet.

 

A policy is meaningless if it can be changed at a moment's notice or if it is subject to fine print or subject to interpretation by whatever phone representative you end up with when you call. You are protected *by law* when you use a credit card. You have very little legal protection with a debit card.

 

Conclusion - the final amount charged was the correct amount.

Suzanne

 

I don't own the shop and that is completely irrelevant to the discussion. Would anything I said be incorrect if I did own the shop?

And, if everyone cancels all their credit cards that do this then credit cards would cease to exist. If you find a credit card that does not pre-authorize purchases you would be the first. Good luck with that.

And, IF you read your agreements with the credit card companies you HAVE authorized them to do this by whipping out your card and letting them run it through the machine.

I suggest you go read the agreements. Boring but valuable information that is good for any consumer to understand.

 

Thanks for updating us on the outcome, Suzanne.

 

I apologize for accusing the bagel shop of any dishonest practices. I posted because as I stated over and over this has never happened to me with any other purchase using my debit card. To me it did seem dishonest because I had never seen this practice before. I came on here to warn others because I honestly thought something dishonest was happening at the bagel shop. I came back to report that I was charged the correct amount and have learned a lesson from this experience.

Suzanne

 

which is SO SO important and i appreciate that you did that! so many ppl throw out a complaint then never post the resolution... you are fair minded and a good neighbor.

 

Hey, I learned a lesson. I was unaware of this practice.

 

And I now have an inexplicable urge for a jalepeno bagel from Ashburn Bagel. They've got the best bagels around.