Why do they ask for signature on One4all gift cards

Abbey1991 · 12 January 2018 at 9:08PM

I am lucky enough to have been given a One4all gift card for Christmas. It works at big retailers like John Lewis, M&S, Boots, WHSmith, House of Fraser, Debenhams, Carphone Warehouse

However:

M&S on self-service tills, requires Signature verification
WHSmith on self-service tills, requires Signature verification
WHSmith wouldn't let me buy normal gift card with it
Waitrose, declined (despite being same as John Lewis)
WHSmith in a hospital, declined
M&S in a train station, declined
Carphone Warehouse online, can't use because balance on card is less than the transaction

It's only Boots that works without hiccup! So beware if you have one of these.

qsk · 13 January 2018 at 11:46AM

It works similar to pre-paid credit cards. As there is no chip, the till will request a signature (as for all non-chip credit cards). Whether they are checked or not is up to the shop assistant.
I think those shops that are listed but declined you are "operator errors": they should swipe it as a credit card, rather than a gift card.

dlusman · 13 January 2018 at 12:03PM

at the one4all site
https://www.one4allgiftcard.co.uk
Under WH Smith it says :

Note: One4all Gift Cards are accepted in WH Smith High Street stores but not at WH Smith Travel outlets at airports, train stations, hospitals and motorway service areas.

( WHS High St & WHS travel are run as effectively different companies within the same group )
I am not suprised you couldnt buy another gift card - fairly standard condition in most stores that you cannot buy another voucher using a voucher

John Lewis & Waitrose may be in the same group - but Waitrose is NOT listed in the list of retailers

dlusman · 13 January 2018 at 12:43PM

Additionally your carphone warehouse transaction may be due to this in the "help" section ( important line highlighted ) - You need to tell the store in advance that your card balance is less than the transaction value , and you want to make up the difference with a different payment method ( though how you would do that online I have no idea ! )

"
Using the One4all with our Retail Partners
When making a purchase you should know the balance on your card to ensure that there are enough funds available to cover the purchase. If the amount of a purchase which you wish to make using your Card is greater than the available balance, you can pay the difference in cash or by another payment method. For example if you know there is £30 on your card and your purchase is £50 inform the retailer that you have £30 on the card and wish to pay the balance with cash, the retailer can then process the transaction without issue. Should the retailer not be informed the transaction will fail as they will be trying to deduct £50 from a card with only £30 available to spend. The retailer will not know the balance and may say that the card is not working.
"

Why do they ask for signature on One4all gift cards

Comments

Categories

Get our FREE Weekly email full of deals & guides - and it’s spam-free