Restaurant requesting my card to keep behind the bar.

MattMattMattUK

Roger2834 said:

My wife and myself dine at a particular restaurant at least two or three times a month and always leave a reasonable tip, ALL of the staff know us in there.
This place is a pub that serves Indian food and the food I might add is always good.
On this particular night we entered and ordered drinks at the bar, I was then asked for my debit / credit card.
I said “ you have never asked for this before “
and she then said “ it’s company policy “
Upon saying this she produced an empty glass to put my card into and said we keep it behind the bar.
My card being left behind a bar that is sometimes left unattended is not safe as far as I am concerned.
Why would I or anyone else leave a contactless card behind the bar where it could be compromised / used fraudulently ?
Anyone could walk behind the bar and steal it or it could it get compromised by a member of staff.
I paid cash for the two drinks ordered and swiftly drank them and left never to return and dined elsewhere.

We would spend a minimum of £150 per month in this place, so they have lost two good customers.
Can an establishment like a pub / restaurant legally request this

They can legally request it yes, there is no law against it. It is also entirely pointless as if you left the premises and they charged your card then that would constitute fraud. There are two further issues though, their card processing policy which they will have signed up to when they got the terminals will prohibit them from doing this and secondly the terms and conditions of the card also prohibit the customer from handing over their card to the restaurant.

Roger2834 said:

after all what if the card was used fraudulently by them either at the time or at a later date what recompense would I have ?

You would report the transaction as fraudulent, they would face the punishment for having fraudulently used the card, you would have your card cancelled and account closed for handing your card over to a third party. You would have no recompense as such and the bank may even deem you liable.

Roger2834 said:

Does everyone think I was right to decline their request ?

Yes, I would not hand my card over to anyone.

Ebe_Scrooge

MattMattMattUK said:

They can legally request it yes, there is no law against it. It is also entirely pointless as if you left the premises and they charged your card then that would constitute fraud.

Would it be fraud, as long as they only charged you the correct invoice amount?  Is that any different to a hotel or car hire company charging you for damage after you've left the hotel/returned the car?

But it's a very valid point that handing over the card will almost certainly breach the T&Cs of the card.

DullGreyGuy

Surprised this it the first time you have come across it!

Most places have something a little more sophisticated, often a binder which they put your card in and give you the tab number/card from it (makes matching easier if more than one leave unpaid) but its just as easy for someone to swipe as a glass with them.

The little card safes were popular for a while, havent seen them as often recently, but the manager key that allows you to open them all is readily available. 

My issue is that I rarely bring my card with me these days and putting my phone behind the bar doesnt work. As others have said, if you arent comfortable doing it or dont bring a card then you can just PAYG and not have a tab 

unforeseen

The other option is that they pre-authorise an amount on you card. Which, depending on the type of pub/restaurant, could be at least £100.
Maybe pre-authorise an amount based on the number of people in the party? 

Clive_Woody

Pretty sure that most banks require that you keep your bank cards in your possession at all times. Handing them over would most likely absolve them of any responsibility arising from fraudulent use.

sourcrates

Most pub chains take payment at the bar when you order.

The restaurant system of payment after the meal has always been open to abuse, it would be a simple step to change the way they operate and in the process not alienate a large majority of their customers.

Paying upfront all but stops fraud as well, perhaps this and other restaurants could take note.

martinbainbridge1975

would never hand my card over, let them take a swipe up to a pre agreed certain limit possibly, but the card stays in my wallet

as stated above I think possibly you are on dodgy ground from a fraud perspective as the card is not in your possession

DullGreyGuy

sourcrates said:

Most pub chains take payment at the bar when you order.

The restaurant system of payment after the meal has always been open to abuse, it would be a simple step to change the way they operate and in the process not alienate a large majority of their customers.

Paying upfront all but stops fraud as well, perhaps this and other restaurants could take note.

Most pubs have an option of setting up a tab... how they do that and how much they advertise it may vary between brands/locations.

I do wonder what the impact of paying as you go along -v- paying at the end has on average bills? I suspect most people's mental arithmetic isnt that good and so just paying at the end leads to higher spending (which may offset runners). Certainly I've had a few times when I'm surprised how much those extra few glasses of wine have added to the bill. 

Roger2834

Many thanks for the comments from everyone who took the time to answer, very much appreciated.
I’m aware that many companies especially hotels will levy a charge at reception when checking in but physically taking someone’s card is ridiculous and wide open to fraud.
The banks ( although I don’t like to defend them )
would be perfectly within their rights to say “!it’s your own fault for being negligent with your card and handing it over “

jbrassy

I'm surprised you've never come across this before. My local pub does it all the time. If you want to run a tab, the pub asks you to put your card behind the bar so you don't run up a huge bill and do a runner. In that sense, I have some sympathy for the restaurant you mention. In any case, if you're that worried, you could just ask to pay as you go? 

Even so, if someone carried out fraudulent transactions on your card, you can always claim it back from your bank. I've never had an issue doing this. I think people over-react to the issue of fraudulent transactions. The only fraud you really need to worry about is push-payment fraud where people ask you to transfer money to another bank account as this is irreversible.