Quote:
Originally Posted by peitsao
It is a strange story, but true, and although it was only $1, it's not the amount but the fact that I was charged a fee. I probably would not have noticed the charge, but with that card, we get an email for every charge incurred at the time of the charge, so that is how I know it happened. They probably count on the fact that most people would not even notice the charge since it is such a small amount.
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Just something to add to that about credit cards and charging. I am assuming they work the same way in the US as they do over here in the UK (although I'm actually in the US as I type this... so it's not really over here!).
For both credit and debit cards a retailer may or may not confirm authorisation of a purchase at point of sale. Some retailers for some cards may not do so if it's a small amount. However in the case of PayPal (and what B&N did for you) is in order to verify the credit card is real, and payments can go through on it, they will pass an authorisation on the card for one dollar. The only effect this has is that your card provider will reserve one dollar for this transaction, which B&N will let lapse, and not collect. By doing this, the only effect on the customer is the loss of one dollar of available credit, until the authorisation expires. I have made an assumption that B&N do not collect the $1, and that they simply authorise it.
Other times I've seen this done are when setting up a mobile phone contract, where payment is monthly, in arrears, the retailer will want to make sure that the payment details you have provided are "sound". Now appearing, especially at supermarkets, across the UK are automated petrol pumps (gas pumps), where you swipe the card before you fill the car. They'll authorise GBP1 and after you've filled the car they'll charge a different amount - the total you actually bought. It's not quite as safe for the retailer as charging the full amount, but it means they get to check you have the money before you start putting petrol in, and to be honest if the card will let GBP1 go through then the chances are it will also let GBP40 go through.