Stores not accepting large bills...

[theknight571]

Be aware that this thread is from 2001.
admin allisolm

I was at a store the other day and tried to purchase a little more than $60 worth of merchandise with a $100 bill.

The store wouldn't accept the $100 bill, stating that management wouldn't allow them to accept $50 or $100 dollar bills. (I can understand not accepting the bill if they couldn't make change, etc.)

Needless to say, I didn't get the merchandise at that store.

This pissed me off at the time, but now I'm wondering..Is it legal for them to do this?

Just wondering.

- TK

 

[Tauren]

They own the store, they make the rules.

 

[RossMAN]

I think it is legal, I have been noticing more and more stores which have signs stating they no longer accept $50 or $100 bills due to counterfit.

 

[Techwhore]

It's a security measure. If they accepted large bills, then people could come in and either get change or purchase things with large bills. This would remove a lot of bills from the register but leaving the same amount of money. This makes it easier to rob, less to physically take.

Granted this would take a lot of people coming in and paying with large bills, but don't put it past people... someone WOULD do it.



<< I have been noticing more and more stores which have signs stating they no longer accept $50 or $100 bills due to counterfit >>



Any store that i've been to that still accepts these bills uses that pen to verify it's not counterfit.

 

[BDawg]

I've never understood how it's possible for a store to refuse &quot;legal tender.&quot; The money is good, and to the government 5 $20s is the same as 1 $100. But with the policy, a $100 is less.

 

[Roose3]

I think it's rather annoying

 

[Amused]

I understand the rule, but it's ridiculous to not accept a 50 or 100 dollar bill for a purchace over $50.

This is the problem with arbitrary rules. People aren't allowed to use their own judgement.

In my stores, I have signs up stating that we wont accept 50s or 100s, unless the purchase is over $50.

 

[guyver01]

<< I've never understood how it's possible for a store to refuse &quot;legal tender.&quot; The money is good, and to the government 5 $20s is the same as 1 $100. But with the policy, a $100 is less. >>




As someone who used to work in retail (for 10+ years) its very easy for me to see this policy being used. There would be many a mornings when I would open the store (and the register tills only start with $100) and someone would come in to buy a newspaper or whatever... under $1 mostly.. and pay with a $50 or $100.... well.. there goes the entire till in one transaction! The primary excuse we would hear is &quot;thats all the bank gives me&quot; ... bulls@&amp;#! ATMs dont give $100 and if you go to a teller... they will give you whatever you ask for. If they dont... time to start looking for another bank. Besides the fact that paying with a $100 bill for a $2-$3 item is rude as hell. You want to make change, that's what a bank is for.

 

[yakko]

<<

<< I've never understood how it's possible for a store to refuse &quot;legal tender.&quot; The money is good, and to the government 5 $20s is the same as 1 $100. But with the policy, a $100 is less. >>




As someone who used to work in retail (for 10+ years) its very easy for me to see this policy being used. There would be many a mornings when I would open the store (and the register tills only start with $100) and someone would come in to buy a newspaper or whatever... under $1 mostly.. and pay with a $50 or $100.... well.. there goes the entire till in one transaction! The primary excuse we would hear is &quot;thats all the bank gives me&quot; ... bulls@&amp;#! ATMs dont give $100 and if you go to a teller... they will give you whatever you ask for. If they dont... time to start looking for another bank. Besides the fact that paying with a $100 bill for a $2-$3 item is rude as hell. You want to make change, that's what a bank is for. >>

I can understand not taking a 50 or a 100 for a $2 item but he was spending over $50. They should have taken it.

 

[Linflas]

It even extends down to convenience stores. 7-11 cops an attitude when you hand them a 20 to pay for $2.00 of stuff. They hem and hawn and sputter when you point out that the ATM they have in the store only gives out 20's.

 

[rudder]

Well I can see them them refusing a $100 bill if you came in and bought a pack of gum, but after $60 thats a god sized purchase. If they did that too me, I would have just left all my crap at the register (which I hope you did).

 

[AaronP]

whenever I have a big bill, I pump gas first, and then when they give a stink about me paying with a $100 dollar bill, I say, &quot;well, either I pay you with this, or you give me the gas for free.&quot; I've never once had them refuse to take my hundred.

I really don't know if its legal or not, on the bill it says something like it's good for all debts in the USA or something. I don't know, if it is illegal, then there is noone to enforce the law since a lot of stores do it.

 

[Viperoni]

Practically everywhere in the GTA they're not accepting $100 bills....and every 20 or 50 is scanned under that black light.

 

[Lord Evermore]

It's &quot;legal tender for all debts, public and private&quot;. That means if you owe someone money, they HAVE to accept any size bill you offer (assuming they can make change). So, as AaronP suggested, if you already owe them the money then they can't decline it, unless they want to give it to you free.

In the case of going to a counter to pay for something that hasn't been taken already, then they can simply refuse to serve you if you won't pay with something smaller. This would apply at a restaurant as well, if you'd already eaten, they have to accept anything you give them, but if you're doing McDonald's or a cafeteria style thing, they can simply take the food back and not serve you.

There are markers made that I believe use iodine (banks probably sell them), which on regular paper will make a black mark, but on the paper used for money will not show up. Simple way to foil the easy counterfeits, but if someone managed to steal paper from the US Mint then it's harder. But there's still the strip put inside the bill that marks what size it is. If the bill doesn't have one, it's fake. The reason a lot of places won't take large bills, besides the fact that they have to make change for them, is that cashiers are often not the smartest people, or they're rushed or just lazy, and don't properly check large bills. If they get a fake 20, it's not so bad; if they get a fake 100, then they've lost a lot of money.


One way a store might discourage use of large bills for things like a restaurant meal you've already eaten: make it take a LONG time to verify the bill is genuine. Or take a LONG time to make change for it. You wanna pay with a 1000 dollar bill, fine, but I've got to drive to the bank to get change for it.

 

[Viper0329]

I agree with the not takin large bills for little purchases, but for an order of $60, they should have taken it. C'mon people, this is gettin rediculous.

 

[MrBond]

Speaking of counterfitters...

A guy that works here (out in the plant, I'm in the office so I odn't know him) got arrested for printing his own money. He never changed the serial number on the bills, and used them all locally. Talk about DUMB...

 

[Soybomb]

<< That means if you owe someone money, they HAVE to accept any size bill you offer (assuming they can make change) >>

Not at all, they accept money at their discretion. Go into wal-mart with $50 in pennies in a sack and try to spend it ,I&quot;ll bet they boot your butt out the door

In this case I think they should have accepted it, but I never carry anything bigger than a $20 so I don't worry too much. Credit cards are good!

 

[iamwiz82]

<<

<< That means if you owe someone money, they HAVE to accept any size bill you offer (assuming they can make change) >>

Not at all, they accept money at their discretion. Go into wal-mart with $50 in pennies in a sack and try to spend it ,I&quot;ll bet they boot your butt out the door

In this case I think they should have accepted it, but I never carry anything bigger than a $20 so I don't worry too much. Credit cards are good! >>



I used to work at a reocrd store and i had a guy pay in penny rolls for a cd. How can you refuse legal tender, ya know?

Also, i had a customer pay is half dollars. I had never seen so many JFK heads in my life.

 

[Lord Evermore]

Soybomb: in your example, you are attempting to pay for something which you have not irrevocably received yet, so they CAN refuse to serve you if you try to pay with pennies. There's nothing in Wal-Mart that you can take and use or eat before paying for it (eating the M&amp;M's as you walk the aisles is theft technically, even if you intended to pay for them when you get to the register).

If Wal-Mart somehow had a restaurant where you ate before paying, or sold gas that you could pump before paying, or anything like that, then yes, they WOULD be legally required to accept the bag full of pennies as payment.

 

[RDMustang1]

I have to agree with Evermore... you aren't in debt until a service has been given or goods have been transfered..

 

[Jfur]

<< The primary excuse we would hear is &quot;thats all the bank gives me&quot; ... bulls@&amp;#! ATMs dont give $100 and if you go to a teller... they will give you whatever you ask for. If they dont... time to start looking for another bank. Besides the fact that paying with a $100 bill for a $2-$3 item is rude as hell. You want to make change, that's what a bank is for. >>



well, ATMs around here DO give out 50s. We have those pens, and often the clerk will stripe our fives and tens. My husband and I are going to bring a highlighter into the drugstore and next time that happens we are going to stripe all the ones they give us back

 

[bigredguy]

we are all sheep so we simply take what is and don't try to change it

 

[technogeeky]

Most conveience stores around here don't take 50's or larger, but most regular stores take 100s.

Strange.

 

[brxndxn]

Convenience stores are the only ones I know of that don't accept 50's or 100's. If you are at a large store (ie. Walmart), you can always ask, &quot;Will you not accept this legal tender?&quot; That question normally scares them enough to accept it.

But anyway.. who ever gets stuck with a $100? You can pay with credit cards, debit cards, and cash - and you only happen to have a $100 bill available?

 

[Mday]

i have a feeling it is illegal, but i could be wrong.

i have not spoken to a lawyer or anything.

wouldn't it be nice if their rejection of &quot;legal tender&quot; means that banks don't have to accept their money... hahahahaa...

mcdonalds has this no larger than $20 policy for a while...