Quote:
Originally Posted by HarryT
The UK does have a de facto "identity card" already - the credit card-sized photo driving licence, which the overwhelming majority of people have. I always use mine where ID is required - eg when withdrawing a large sum of money from the bank.
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This reminds me of my USA vacation last summer: Everytime I made a large credit card purchase the sales staff requested to see "picture id". So I always gave them my international driving license which was issued here in the UAE. Each and every time it was accepted without the slightest hesitation - even though it was basically an A6-size grey cardboard booklet with my picture stapled (!!!) inside and filled out and stamped by hand (the stamp was arabic and english). How many US sales staff have ever seen an interntional driving license I am asking you ? (Seriously: everybody knows about international driving licenses in the US?)
Not once I was asked to show a (what I classify a real) identity document like my passport. I perceived that as really ridiculous. You could fake such a cardboard crap document like that IDL in almost no time.
In contrast, my issuing bank here in the UAE called for each and every of those large transactions within twenty minutes to confirm them with me. Whow.
cklammer
Disclaimer: If you find this post inflammatory: it is so because I tend to be an inflammatory person. Nothing personal.