Can a hotel take an imprint of my credit card?
Some time ago, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) was amended to require companies who accept a credit card to print only the last 5 digits of the 16-digit credit card number on a receipt. That way, if you lost the receipt, no one would be able to use your credit card number.
However, recently, when I checked in at a hotel, the front desk took an imprint of my credit card, which means that all 16 digits were imprinted on a document I was asked to sign to confirm the rate, etc.
What good does it do to have a law, which prohibits a business from printing the entire 16 digits on the receipt only to have the business take an imprint of the credit card, which shows all 16-digits. Is this legal? Thanks.
For more information on the 5-digit requirement, you might want to review this FTC publication.
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/business/alerts/alt007.pdf
For more information about the law, which requires companies to print only the last 5 digits of your credit card number (as opposed to all 16 digits), see this section of the The Fair Credit Reporting Act: Section 605 (g).
Related Credit Card Sites
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- what is the fair crediting reporting act FCRA on background reports when employing for a job and.. more?
- Free Credit Report Without A Credit Card Explained
Quite frankly, I don’t know if it’s legal or not, but since it’s not a receipt the law you’ve specified does not pertain to it. Hotels do this often, more modern hotels store your card info on their computer system when they charge you, other have to imprint the card. This is so that if you decide to vandalize the room and steal everything out of it, they have some way of being compensated since they have your credit card. Same reason why hotels always require a credit card number even if you pay cash.
if they used an imprint machine – that’s probably the only way they have of taking your number, so it HAS to show all the digits in order to be able to deposit it at the bank – if they had a more modern card scanner, they wouldn;t have needed to make the imprint
perhaps their electronic system was down?
If your card doesn’t scan then they have to make an imprint so they don’t get a charge back.For instance your card doesn’t scan and they don’t take an imprint then you could say I didn’t do that and the credit card company would give you your money back.It’s for their protection and totally legal.We do it all the time where I work.
At our hotel:
Credit card imprints are taken for a security deposit. You can opt out and pay a cash deposit. You can also request a room inspection at check out and have your card number blacked out. However, because of Visa, AMX and MC charge back policies; if your card is paying for the room or if there is an incidental charge, the imprint must now be kept for 1 year.
The main reason for the imprint is to enforce the no smoking policy. That is not the only reason. One guest did $7,500 in damages in one night. Anouther tayed 3 nights with no complaint then they claimed mold us to be scared and refund them. A few have taken a $10 item or used the towels to clean their bikes or tires. In this case they get charged actual cost that is pro rated to consider normal ware and tear. If over a few dollars, they get a notice in the mail with the option to return the item or to dispute the charge in writing. None have disputed the charge but if they had, they most likely would have received a refund. There is much more:
If a hotel imprints your card, it is much safer than a computer scan. The same goes for electronic copies of your signature. This is because hotel computer scans are in the top 10 group of mass credit card thefts. Think of it this way: A paper imprint can be copied and used by an amateur thief/employee to buy something on line and he/she will likely be caught. A professional will use the electronic copy of your card to immediately make a new card. In this case they can run it into the ground in a few minuets. They can even print their own photo on the front of the card!
So a paper copy is safer but pay attention to the actions of the person behind the counter. Make sure the carbon is immediately cross-shredded. Ask about the hotel policy. Notice if the registration or the access to it is locked up. Our office stays locked. I actually had to disable the lock on the door because customers would unlock the door as they walked out of the office. After check out, the imprint copy is locked up. After 1 year, it goes into the winter bon fire with all the rest of the documents that need to be destroyed.
By the way: If you think a document shredding company is safe, think again. I have seen them dumping mass piles of documents at my local dump. The guy got immediately pissed when I grabbed the folders. No I was not interested in the documents. I just wanted to get a stack of empty folders so I would not have to buy new ones. Worse yet, after yelling at me, he left all the documents there without making sure the skip loader buried them.
There is more: Whenever you have your purse or wallet open, pay attention to your surroundings and the people around you. I had one customer in the office leaning over the first customer at the counter and looking at his card info. I politely asked him to back away and he got pissed. I then had him wait outside. The customer at the counter thanked me. Now when one customer/family is in the office and a new customer/family arrives, they wait outside the locked door until the first customer is finished and all documents are put away. This does not make the person who is waiting outside very happy. It does however make the customer with his information on the counter feel much more comfortable. Don’t take this lightly. There are those who have hidden cameras. There are also hidden cameras at ATM’s and fake card readers are some times attached to the front of the ATM or gas pump. If something don’t look or feel right, go somewhere else.
Also if your card is not signed, then if someone steels it, they can run it to $999 and it’s petty theft. If they are under 18 or a first offence the judge most likely will let them go with just probation. On the other hand, if your card is signed and they try to copy your signature, then it is forgery. That is a felony. Then the judge is required to give the perp at least a year in jail!
If not signed in California: Then they can sign it in their own handwriting without even trying to copy your signature. Than the signature will match. Worse yet, in Ca. if the signature does match, then it is against the law for a retail merchant to even ask to see an ID!!!! It is legal to ask if the card is being used as a security deposit at a hotel or rental car.