From Grocery Slave:
I just had to get this off of my chest:
Apparently, ladies and gentleman, the banks no longer have ATM machines. Surely, that must be the case because if it's not, then why do people constantly get cash back from the cash registers at the grocery stores?
I've worked in a small town grocery store for over five years. During those five years, I've seen it all: screaming kids, drunken customers, bloody money, and, as you've probably guessed, numerous customers getting cash back when they paid with their debit cards. Considering that, one, the store I work at is a small town, privately owned, grocery store and, two, there are three, count that three, banks within a minute's walk from the store, getting cash back always seemed ridiculous to me.
Don't get me wrong, though. I'm not saying that each and every store throughout the United States should get rid of having cash back. However, I believe that there should be a limit to how much cash back a customer can get. I have no problem with someone getting twenty, thirty, or even forty dollars cash back. What I do not like and do not approve of is when customers, frequent and regular customers, get ninety, a hundred and fifty, or two hundred dollars back. If you're going to get much, then go to your bank!
Yes, I understand that getting cash back from the register at the grocery store is convenient and easier, but there are a few things to consider before you get cash back.
One, please realize that, although the store itself may or may not charge you for getting cash back, your bank does. Unless your bank specifically tells you that you can get cash back anywhere free of charge, there is always, ALWAYS, a hidden charge. Sure, your bank may be a ten minute drive away, but is that such a bad thing when banks and stores charge, at the very least, two dollars and fifty cents for getting cash back? I think not.
Second, the register that you go to may or may not have the money in their drawer to give you cash back. Getting cash back when they don't have it results in them feeling agitated at angry because not only did you not tell them how much you were getting back, but now, they need to go to the service counter to get the money for you. The cashier then has to pay the service counter back, and this leads to my third point.
My third point is this: the store may not have a lot of business that night. Think about it: if you get cash back from a register that doesn't have any cash, then that cashier has to borrow it from the service counter's safe, making the safe short however much you got back. If there aren't a lot of customers and if the cashier isn't that busy, then how will that debt get paid? From the cashier's register? They don't have it. From the employee? Perhaps, but then the employee would be out money that they need to live off of because of your selfishness and laziness.
And the fourth thing that you should consider is that you will be discussed after you leave the store. You may or may not know what is being said, but you can guarantee that the cashier who waited on you and had to run around the store like a chicken with their head cut off just to get you a hundred dollars just because you were too lazy to go to your bank will not be a happy camper. Your reputation is at stake, along with your wallet thanks to the hidden bank fees for getting cash back.
But I'm not limiting this to just debit cards. Customers who use checks should take heed as well.
Granted, there aren't a lot of grocery stores or superstores who allow cash back on a check as much as they used to, but some still do (mainly for past or current employees). As with the debit cards, getting twenty to forty dollars cash back on a check isn't a big deal. But one hundred? Two? Three? Four?! You might as well go to your bank and withdraw that money, honey! First off, the register you go to probably won't have that much in their drawer, especially if you're at a small town grocery store like the one I work at. Second, it's pointless to get so much cash back from a check; if you want that much back, go to your bank. Third, the check might bounce. You, the customer, may or may not check your bank statements or do online banking. Or maybe you have bills that take money out of your account automatically. Either way, how do you know how much is in your account unless you check it every single day? The answer is simple: you don't. And you can be sure that if your check bounces because you got too much cash back on it, the bank and the managers at the grocery store will be coming after you. And finally, how does the cashier know that that really is your name on that check? Check systems nowadays don't require a phone number or ID for it to go through, so what's to stop you from stealing a check and using it to get cash back when you buy groceries at the grocery story?
As stated above, I've worked at the same small town grocery store for over five years and one of my biggest pet peeves is when people get large amounts of cash back. There are three banks not too far from the store; use them! Or use whatever bank you go to. The point is, don't get cash back, or rather large sums back, without informing the cashier running the register or taking into account all of the various things that need to be taken into consideration. It might save you, your wallet, and the register a lot of money in the end.
--Grocery Slave
