Bar overcharges my credit card on tip line.

[santo=dorf]

Has anyone ever been f***ed over by a bar or restaurant on the tip line for using a credit card? Last Saturday up in Ames, I bought 3 drinks for $20 and even though I had enough cash, I whipped out my credit card to pay for it. I remember leaving a $5 tip on the line and writing the total to be $25 below it. I was looking for the charge in my statements online since then, and I noticed it didn't get charged until yesterday. The f***ers made a charge for $20 and then another charge for $25. Now I know I had some drinks in me, but I know what I wrote, and I even told my buddy about the possibility of this situation before the charge was made.

 

I don't want to call it in just yet because this is my debit card and they'll probably freeze the account and I have bills to pay. Should I talk to the bar, cops, and/or credit company? Or just eat the $20 and not deal with the hassle?

[RockRaines]

Classic move working in a bar, especially if you leave your card there overnight. If you are wasted they will do this to you, of course it could be a simple charge for the open tab and a credit later, but most likely they just typed in the tip wrong or did it in haste. The only time we really overcharged people for stuff was when they left their card there overnight and I remember them being assholes.

[southsider2k5]

Talk to the bar first, and make them produce the receipts. If they won't cooperate, then go to your bank and the cops.

[Y2HH]

Has anyone ever been f***ed over by a bar or restaurant on the tip line for using a credit card? Last Saturday up in Ames, I bought 3 drinks for $20 and even though I had enough cash, I whipped out my credit card to pay for it. I remember leaving a $5 tip on the line and writing the total to be $25 below it. I was looking for the charge in my statements online since then, and I noticed it didn't get charged until yesterday. The f***ers made a charge for $20 and then another charge for $25. Now I know I had some drinks in me, but I know what I wrote, and I even told my buddy about the possibility of this situation before the charge was made.

 

I don't want to call it in just yet because this is my debit card and they'll probably freeze the account and I have bills to pay. Should I talk to the bar, cops, and/or credit company? Or just eat the $20 and not deal with the hassle?

 

Call your credit card company and dispute the charge -- tell them the bill SHOULD have been 25$, which is all you authorized to be charged. The credit card company won't get mad, don't worry -- and they have a customer defense department that will take it up with the bar/resturant that charged you. They also shouldn't "freeze" the account, as it wasn't stolen, you're simply telling them what you authorized versus what was actually charged.

[sox4lifeinPA]

Talk to the bar first, and make them produce the receipts. If they won't cooperate, then go to your bank and the cops.

 

Fill out a dispute form with you bank. They'll research and take care of things. usually they'll even provide a provisional credit in the interim.

 

Cops are useless, unless you can prove that an employee was doing this intentionally. It wouldn't hurt to talk to the bar's owner/operator in a calm fashion.

[CanOfCorn]

Is it still pending? Or is it charged to your account? Sometimes this happens to me when it's pending for the reason mentioned above...open tab is one and then final is the other. When it finally goes through, only the final is charged.

 

If that's not the case...call the bar first, then bank.

[IlliniKrush]

This wouldn't have happened at Kams

[The Critic]

That's what you get for being Mr. Hot Shot Credit Card Man.

[Mplssoxfan]

Is it still pending? Or is it charged to your account? Sometimes this happens to me when it's pending for the reason mentioned above...open tab is one and then final is the other. When it finally goes through, only the final is charged.

 

If that's not the case...call the bar first, then bank.

It's extremely possible that the extra $20 charge is pending. What happens in that case is that your server or bartender accidentally swiped your card twice and the extra swipe will be dropped in a few days.

 

If they are indeed charging you twice, call the establishment and have them fix it. 98% of places won't want to treat a customer like that, and, if you act reasonable about it, you might get a gift card out of it, too.

[Texsox]

Another possibility is hotels, restaurants, gas stations, rental car companies, will place a "hold" on a dollar amount to be certain your charges will go through. Once you settle up the hold is released and the correct bill is entered,

 

But what I suspect happened here was either

A. An employee figured to make a little extra

 

or

 

B. They saw the total and accidenatlly entered it as the tip.

 

My first call would be to the bar, then your bank.

[juddling]

one night my wife and i went out to dinner and proceededto have one of the worst nights out possible. The waitress was slow, rude, couldn't get our orders right, and not very attentive at all. (it was a tuesday night so it wasn't really busy).

It would have been one thing if maybe the waitress was new or having a bad night and apologized or something but it was not happening. As i paid with my credit card, i stressed to the lady ringing me out i was not happy about my experience and got an apology from her. I mentioned this as i put a big fat 0 on the tip line of my credit slip.

About a week later, i saw the charge and i was overcharged by $20. I got my slip and prinout from the bank and threw a fit at the restaurant. i did get some gift certificates which i never did use but i felt better walking in there during the dinner rush on a friday and complained. It would have only have been better if the particular waitress would have been working that night because i really believe it was her who put the extra charge on there.

[Rex Hudler]

The biggest question is where is YOUR copy?? If you have one, then this should be easy. Take it to the bar manager and have him clear it up. If you don't, then call the restaurant/bar and ask if they will look up your receipt. Tell them what you had and that it does not make sense that you would leave a $25 tip on a $20 tab. If they balk, then call your credit card company/bank.

 

Don't start firing bullets until necessary. Try a simple professional approach first. It may have simply been a mistake.

[Y2HH]

Another possibility is hotels, restaurants, gas stations, rental car companies, will place a "hold" on a dollar amount to be certain your charges will go through. Once you settle up the hold is released and the correct bill is entered,

 

But what I suspect happened here was either

A. An employee figured to make a little extra

 

or

 

B. They saw the total and accidenatlly entered it as the tip.

 

My first call would be to the bar, then your bank.

 

A "hold" should never be more than 1$ unless they say so up front -- not to mention, on your e-bill (online) it should say "temp" next to the charge, designating that it was a temporary max test. Temp charges are simply a test to see if the credit line exists -- if the card is maxed, the 1$ temp charge will fail. Like I said, nobody should be temping 20$ without telling you about it, ever. I worked in the credit card PCI industry, and I'm not even sure if that's legal...then again, it's possibly he/she simply forgot to tell them about the 20$ temp, but for some reason I doubt it...because it should be marked as a temp credit line check on his e-bill.

[Heads22]

Where at?

[T R U]

Just eat the $20 and let it go

 

Best option, otherwise your going to go through a big hassle over 20 bucks

[witesoxfan]

Just eat the $20 and let it go

 

Best option, otherwise your going to go through a big hassle over 20 bucks

 

You have no idea how much $20 can get you apparently

[T R U]

You have no idea how much $20 can get you apparently

 

I have plenty of an idea

[knightni]

That's 40 tacos from Jack-in-a-Box, iirc.

 

[sox4lifeinPA]

Just eat the $20 and let it go

 

Best option, otherwise your going to go through a big hassle over 20 bucks

 

 

note to self....rip off Shadows $20 at a time.

[DrunkBomber]

I had a friend who was a bartender at Mothers on division ad she used to do stuff like this all the time. Anytime someone left the tip line blank they filled it in for a large amount, or anytime someone left their card they whacked them pretty good. The problem is that its very hard to prove it was wrong unless you have your copy of the receipt. A lot of bars will adjust the mistake if confronted though.

 

Also, what a lot of people said about it being left open for the tab could be true. But I doubt it because you closed the tab out

[witesoxfan]

I have plenty of an idea

 

thats a damn lie

[3E8]

That's 40 tacos from Jack-in-a-Box, iirc.

 

Or 15 Arby's melts...yum

[mr_genius]

That's what you get for being Mr. Hot Shot Credit Card Man.

 

 

[RockRaines]

That's 40 tacos from Jack-in-a-Box, iirc.

 

1.06 for 2.

[Soxbadger]

If it is a CC not a debit, call your CC company and tell them that the bar is charging your card fraudulently. They will reverse the charges and force the bar to prove to them that they were legitimate.

 

Visa, Master Card, etc are real bastards to vendors who screw their cardholders and they have almost unlimited resources to fight the bar.

Edited May 29, 2007 by Soxbadger