Katrina Debit-Card Abuse Update: Some Merchants Refuse Cards

Original Post: This Weekend’s Unanswered Questions (091705): Special Katrina Debit-Card Abuse Edition
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I suspect the merchants’ lawyers may lose sleep worrying about a lawsuit from a disgruntled card abuser, but it’s nice to see retailers, many of whom are surely also relief donors, taking a stand:

Retailers take a swipe at Katrina card use

Some stores across the country are refusing Red Cross-provided hurricane-relief debit cards because they do not approve of the goods being bought.

…. Retailer Vicki Haniford said she has begun refusing the cards at her store in Illinois. “[Last] Saturday, I had 14 transactions go through from about six different people totaling a little over $1,000,” she E-mailed. “They purchased jewelry and a TV with a DVD player. I called the Red Cross and they said unfortunately these people made bad choices when purchasing, but there was nothing they could do.

“This is totally and morally wrong,” she says. “Many hard-working Americans donated money to the disaster victims so they could have food and clothing, not buy outrageous items.”

Another reader told me: “My daughter works at an entertainment store in a suburban Atlanta mall. [Last Sunday], an apparent hurricane refugee came in the store and purchased a personal PlayStation and two games for a total of about $360, using a Red Cross debit card.

“They couldn’t refuse the sale, but subsequently store policy changed.

The Red Cross, whose official line on the matter is still “it’s out of our hands once we issue the cards,” had better promise not to do something stupid like this again, or they will hear the ugly sounds of wallets closing nationwide.
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Sept. 19 5PM: Outsede the Beltway Jammer.