How can this happen with my debit card?

[Led Zeppelin]

Originally posted by: Hector13

Originally posted by: werk

Originally posted by: Hector13

Originally posted by: WoofyJr
Yes they usually do that to make sure you have enough $ to pay for tip in case. It will clear after two business days. Just wait till either monday or tues to see if it changes or not.

that is f*cking ridiculous... what right does a restaurant have to make a temp. authorization for my tip? If any place did that to me I would never eat there again (or at least never leave them a tip)!

what? why the hell should a restaurant put a temp. authorization on my card for anything that I didn't expressly agree to?

I agree. The only thing that should be debited is what is the amount that's on that little piece of paper that I signed, or else, what's the purpose of obtaining the signature? Like I said before, I've never had this happen to me in the 6 years I've been using my debit card on almost a daily basis.

 

[GoingUp]

I called the manager earlier this morning and she promised to look into it and call me back, she hasnt yet.... if there was an error, I am gettin my money refunded and a gift certificate as well.... ill wait and see what happens in a few days...

 

[Jombo]

restaurants have their credit card machines configured differently than other retail outfits, as you don't pay right up at the time of purchase.

i woudl imagine this is how they do it: 1st they enter the purchase amount, then enter. second screen asks for the amount of tip, and they might enter $5 as default just to make sure they can take the extra $5 or whatever you end up leaving as a tip. (i'd imagine $5 since that's around 20% and dinner tips are around there right?

now i dun know if waitress goes back to clear that extra $5 if you leave cash tip, and in this case maybe she forgot. or you have to wait for it to settle to be taken out as suggested above. or it could be a common practice by the restaurants/ or waitor/waitresses to charge the tip and keep it on there. since most people i know just rip up their card statements right after.. they sign. (which i think is dumb, but then again, i take the receipts home and never balance, then i can't find it when i need it later ^^;; so i can't say nothing right?)

but yea, call your bank up too, and have the bank and the restaurant figure it out. altho i doubt it, there maybe some shady people out there, ya know?

 

[Thegonagle]

Originally posted by: tw1164
I would wait till monday to worry about it. Sometimes they hold alittle more then they should. It takes a day or two, but the real charge will be reflected.

Yes, that's correct. Don't worry until the real charge posts. I see that the approved amount of $31.98 is exactly 20% higher than the bill. That's a completely standard practice in the restaurant business. That's done so that their credit card machine doesn't need to go back online when they enter any tip that you might write in.

 

[Wintermute76]

I"ve had it happen once to me. Wells Fargo said it's a holding charge, like others have said already. They didn't say why it's there, just that it's common and that the real amount would be charged once everything goes thru and gets approved.

FWIW

 

[Oakenfold]

When I get up this morning and check my checkin account balance, the resturant charged me 31.98.

Sounds like that's what they charged you, you can either call them which you have already done or call your bank and put a dispute in.

This happens quite often, what some other members have said applies to the authorization amount being higher than what actually goes through to your checking account, it's possible that your visa check card may work differently than the credit union that I work at but I doubt it.

Always keep your receipts when doing credit/signature based transactions, it's your proof as to how much you agreed to pay. Good job to you on doing that.

 

[StageLeft]

Wait...I frequently go to a restaurant and find that they over authorize, but when it settles it always goes down to the amount that it was supposed to, so I've gotten used to it. If nobody else has pointed it out (not reading the thread), that $31.98 is your bill times 1.2. I'd bet they pre-authorized that in case you wanted to build a tip into the final amount, so they know it will go through. I'm sure you'll be fine.

 

[Oakenfold]

Originally posted by: Skoorb
Wait...I frequently go to a restaurant and find that they over authorize, but when it settles it always goes down to the amount that it was supposed to, so I've gotten used to it. If nobody else has pointed it out (not reading the thread), that $31.98 is your bill times 1.2. I'd bet they pre-authorized that in case you wanted to build a tip into the final amount, so they know it will go through. I'm sure you'll be fine.

He said it's

gone through to his checking account already
The authorization amount shouldn't have anything to do with authorizations at this point.

 

[Jzero]

He said it's

gone through to his checking account already
The authorization amount shouldn't have anything to do with authorizations at this point.

It's a debit card. Just like unposted transactions count towards your credit limit until they are cleared, so it goes for your checking account balance.

 

[Oakenfold]

Originally posted by: Jzero

He said it's

gone through to his checking account already
The authorization amount shouldn't have anything to do with authorizations at this point.

It's a debit card. Just like unposted transactions count towards your credit limit until they are cleared, so it goes for your checking account balance.

Right but we are talking about his balance, not his authorization or his credit limit that is tied to his account in relation to his balance, the auth should drop after it clears his account, maybe a day at the most, are you suggesting that the different authorization amount will change the amount that cleared his account?
Maybe i'm getting confused but I don't see how that is going to work.

 

[Jzero]

Originally posted by: Oakenfold

Originally posted by: Jzero

He said it's

gone through to his checking account already
The authorization amount shouldn't have anything to do with authorizations at this point.

It's a debit card. Just like unposted transactions count towards your credit limit until they are cleared, so it goes for your checking account balance.

Right but we are talking about his balance, not his authorization or his credit limit that is tied to his account in relation to his balance, the auth should drop after it clears his account, maybe a day at the most, are you suggesting that the different authorization amount will change the amount that cleared his account?
Maybe i'm getting confused but I don't see how that is going to work.

Unposted transactions still affect your balance.
If I have $100 in my checking account and the restaurant hits me for a $35 holding charge to cover what will be $25 in the end, my balance will be $65 until the unposted charge is removed, which can take some days. When the unposted charge is removed his balance will go back to $75

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: Oakenfold

Originally posted by: Jzero

He said it's

gone through to his checking account already
The authorization amount shouldn't have anything to do with authorizations at this point.

It's a debit card. Just like unposted transactions count towards your credit limit until they are cleared, so it goes for your checking account balance.

Right but we are talking about his balance, not his authorization or his credit limit that is tied to his account in relation to his balance, the auth should drop after it clears his account, maybe a day at the most, are you suggesting that the different authorization amount will change the amount that cleared his account?
Maybe i'm getting confused but I don't see how that is going to work.

Well if his debit card for his checking account is actually a visa check card, their preauthorization will appear as not just a preauthorization but real money taken out of his account and he won't have access to it until they release that preauthorization and put through just the regular amount. Such is the penalty for using a visa check card!

 

[LukFilm]

Originally posted by: Jzero

Originally posted by: Oakenfold

Originally posted by: Jzero

He said it's

gone through to his checking account already
The authorization amount shouldn't have anything to do with authorizations at this point.

It's a debit card. Just like unposted transactions count towards your credit limit until they are cleared, so it goes for your checking account balance.

Right but we are talking about his balance, not his authorization or his credit limit that is tied to his account in relation to his balance, the auth should drop after it clears his account, maybe a day at the most, are you suggesting that the different authorization amount will change the amount that cleared his account?
Maybe i'm getting confused but I don't see how that is going to work.

Unposted transactions still affect your balance.
If I have $100 in my checking account and the restaurant hits me for a $35 holding charge to cover what will be $25 in the end, my balance will be $65 until the unposted charge is removed, which can take some days. When the unposted charge is removed his balance will go back to $75

He is correct.

 

[maziwanka]

i would definately b!tch them out for that.

 

[Oakenfold]

Originally posted by: Jzero

Originally posted by: Oakenfold

Originally posted by: Jzero

He said it's

gone through to his checking account already
The authorization amount shouldn't have anything to do with authorizations at this point.

It's a debit card. Just like unposted transactions count towards your credit limit until they are cleared, so it goes for your checking account balance.

Right but we are talking about his balance, not his authorization or his credit limit that is tied to his account in relation to his balance, the auth should drop after it clears his account, maybe a day at the most, are you suggesting that the different authorization amount will change the amount that cleared his account?
Maybe i'm getting confused but I don't see how that is going to work.

Unposted transactions still affect your balance.
If I have $100 in my checking account and the restaurant hits me for a $35 holding charge to cover what will be $25 in the end, my balance will be $65 until the unposted charge is removed, which can take some days. When the unposted charge is removed his balance will go back to $75

Unposted authorizations would effect his credit limit on the card, they will not effect his checking account balance until they post. ----

Okay I think I see what you are saying, it sounds like our financial instituitions work differently.
Where I work if you have $300.00 in your account you can do $300.00 in check card credit based transactions, then go to the ATM and withdraw 300.00, of course when the check transactions hit you will be negative.

Jzero according to what you've said given the same situation the person wouldn't have $300.00 to take out of the ATM then right?


With a credit based transaction it takes 2-3 days sometimes longer to post, your actual checking account, your balance is unaffected during this time until the transaction posts. (signature based transaction)

A debit which is pin (you have to enter your ATM pin number) based will put the funds on hold immediateley, this is like pulling money out of the ATM which would make funds unavailable at the time of the transaction, these go through in a day or so.

You guys sure you understand he did a credit based transaction? It's got to be a difference in the procedure of what's effected with credit transactions then, anyhow interested to see what you guys say how your bank or credit union works. Jzero specifically.

 

[Oakenfold]

Up for Jzero to see.
Thread is now hijacked into a how does your check card work where you bank thread.

 

[GoingUp]

charge is still there...

 

[Thegonagle]

Originally posted by: Gobadgrs
charge is still there...

Who's your bank? Wells fargo? Their computer system sucks. The charge is probably posting today, (Monday, nothing posts on Saturday or Sunday, duh!), but you won't see it on Wells Fargo's sucky one-update-a-day system until tomorrow morning.

Wait until the REAL charge goes through, where you can see the name of the place where where you did the transaction, not just "pending charge."

This pending charge affects the "available balance," not the actual real balance. If you had 46 dollars in the account, wrote a $20 check, and charged the $26 at the restaurant, which grabbed a pre-authorization of $32, you would not bounce a check or incur any fees (unless the bank plays dirty, which I guess many do these days).

 

[Ranger X]

Sometimes there is a mandatory gratuity so you might have paid tip twice.

 

[2002R1Rider]

waiter/waitress put their own tip on there for you...

 

[RossMAN]

I'm amazed, I never knew we had so many banking experts here on ATOT

 

[Thegonagle]

Originally posted by: 2002R1Rider
waiter/waitress put their own tip on there for you...

I'd bet you she didn't. . .

 

[Oakenfold]

Originally posted by: RossMAN
I'm amazed, I never knew we had so many banking experts here on ATOT

No expert here, I just deny lots of loans, approve some and do a lot of service for retards that can't balance check books.

 

[Vic]

Originally posted by: ISO
Next time don't skimp on the tip.

A $5 tip on $26.65 is 18.76%. While maybe not a fat tip, it's hardly skimpy. Above average actually.

This was not a temporary "Authorization" either. Restaurants are not allowed to do that to make sure you "can cover the tip." Tipping, except in cases of larger parties and when expressly stated on both the menu and included in the final bill, is not mandatory. There is no law that says people have to tip.

Gobadgrs, IMO you are the victim of a relatively common restaurant fraud, where your waitperson altered your debit card receipt to pad his/her tip. Did you remember to write down zero tip on the receipt and to write in the final amount? If not, I'm willing to bet it was done for you.

edit: and yes, this would have been a credit based transaction. I do these all the time with my Visa debit card.

 

[GoingUp]

Originally posted by: Vic

Originally posted by: ISO
Next time don't skimp on the tip.

A $5 tip on $26.65 is 18.76%. While maybe not a fat tip, it's hardly skimpy. Above average actually.

This was not a temporary "Authorization" either. Restaurants are not allowed to do that to make sure you "can cover the tip." Tipping, except in cases of larger parties and when expressly stated on both the menu and included in the final bill, is not mandatory. There is no law that says people have to tip.

Gobadgrs, IMO you are the victim of a relatively common restaurant fraud, where your waitperson altered your debit card receipt to pad his/her tip. Did you remember to write down zero tip on the receipt and to write in the final amount? If not, I'm willing to bet it was done for you.

edit: and yes, this would have been a credit based transaction. I do these all the time with my Visa debit card.

yup I wrote down zero on the reciept