Five employees standing around behind the counter chatting, long wait for service for a return, indifferent and rude handling of request... my last trip to CompUSA was indeed..my last.

My policy in handling such matters is to stay viciously sweetly calm and unmovable.

and in that vein..when all was said and done and my requests were denied..I simply leaned forward and said with a smile...

"I'm sooo glad you're going out of business and all losing your jobs".

It's satisfying..just to remember it!

I went into a CompUSA over the weekend and I want to know how they think they will get rid of their inventory by reducing their prices only by 10-40%? Computers, printer ink, cameras, etc are 10% off. Things that no body really wants are 40% off

I think customers are a part of the customer service problem. Don't get me wrong; I think companies should strive to be excellent communicators.

But because people want it cheaper, we pay for what we get. That's why our calls get routed to India; that's why the majority of our crap is made in China...

If we actually paid for what we wanted, I don't think many people would buy it.

well the US dollar has been on the decline.....

I'm sorry but I've never been to a store in my life that didn't accept cash. Your argument has no merit because Best Buy has a reasonable amount of security that would make it safe for them to accept cash.

@riverstyxxx:

Lots of places don't want cash - you have to store it and transport it, and it creates a theft risk. Particularly stores with larger $ value items.

As for buying cars, while the dealer clearly doesn't want to take a credit card for a $50k purchase (due to the fees), they'd much prefer a cashier's check to $50k in cash. If they would prefer cash, they're tax cheats.

I remember too. When CU was closing down in our area, they paid homeless people to stand on street corners with "x% Off!". Over time, that number went from 10% to 60%. I stopped in a few times and it was all squalor. Everything was still more expensive then going up the road to say, Frys.

The stuff that CU hawks is cheaper and more abundant on the net anyway. I hope all these brick and mortar shops go under because of their business practices.

Have a nice week, everyone.

@bonzombiekitty:
Not really true - the real question (as some has noted) is when a debt has occurred and this is governed by contract law. If you have a contract a consumer is obligated to pay $ and the business is obligated to provide the goods.

Generally the rule is that an advertisement is not an offer, but this is misread by some to say that this includes advertisements that may be more specific and in this case the advertisement is made more specific by the presence of the goods (the indeterminate factor) as well as the FTC laws on deceptive practices.

So you can say a contract is definitely formed when you have the the goods in your hand and say you want to buy the goods at the price that they offered (in otherwords is this for sale, how much, and ok I will take it.

While they could limit the sale at the very onset by stating that they only accept credit, fruit, or services, they did not. After you form a contract the time for dickering is over - a debt is incurred and $ is legal tender.

If this is not the case then you would have the same right to dicker by demanding more after you gave your $.

It should be noted, though, that the guy not accepting cash was a dumb move, and I'd hope an aberration at even that one store. Sounds more and more like the service is just a crapshoot and the two CT stores have competent employees still on hand (one of them told me I was better off not buying a cell phone because he wasn't sure what effects it'd have, and also that I'd be better off upgrading when I re-up my contract).

So I called the store to see if the items I wanted were in stock, after I asked the guy about them he said, "I know who you are, your the guy that wanted to pay cash. My district manager & corporate called me and read me the riot act over this. Thanks for getting me in trouble!"

So, that's a no? ;) And isn't the big news here that he managed 10% off on a Mac? Last I checked, Mac buyers were looking at a crisp 5% markdown. (See, now, if he wanted a PC, he could get a whole 7% discount.)

And people wonder why the CompUSA liquidation's been a gigantic cluster...

@Eyebrows McGee: About two years ago, the Hillsborough County commission (Tampa,FL) decided that they didn't want their sheriff's deputies to have to bother with investigating drive-offs, so they ruled that all gas stations are now pre-pay only. I hear you on the feeling that it's got to be a bad area if it's pre-pay only.

Come to think of it, they're correct -- Tampa's about 3-5x more dangerous than New York City. Maybe if they didn't insist on using police officers for revenue collection (traffic tickets) and focus on fighting real crime, it might actually be safe to walk the streets at night here.

I mostly pay-at-pump anyway, so it doesn't really matter. But once I'm outside the city limits, a lot of places even let you pump-then-pay at night!

@weave: Visit us in the upper midwest (aside from Chicago, Milwaukee and Minneapolis) and you'll find plenty of places where you can pump first and pay later. We're good people. Heck, those Packers were even nice enough to give the Giants a chance to get whipped by New England. So nice. (Disclaimer: definitely not a GB fan)

Here's a hint: don't spend money you don't have.

It would only be a debt if they had finalized the sale, you went home with the computer and they sent you a bill.

@ivealwaysgotmail10: Interesting that the stores who have coin star also have self pay checkout lanes with a little small hole for coins. You'd think they would have a coin dump to help people put coins in for self pay. I know I feed the slot with whatever coins I have and never go to coinstar. Actually somebody will probably design a little chute to help dump coins into the pay slot.

I don't understand why anyone would want a cashless society. Hello, anonymity? I don't want everyone knowing everything that I buy. I'm not buying bomb kits or anything, it's just none of anyone's business. Go read The Handmaid's Tale.

The real stupidity here is on the part of their loss prevention department, assuming they even have one.

Fun with counterfeit detection markers: Those silly markers cashiers use to "detect" counterfeits are actually just iodine. The theory is that counterfeits are made with low quality paper with a high starch content (turns iodine black) as opposed to real cash being made of linen, with little starch content (iodine remains red).

So spray real cash with laundry starch and head out to your favorite clueless retailer. Any luck, and you'll have a great lawsuit for your trouble!

I worked in retail as an operations manager at a now-closed retail chain. When the store went tits-up, the policy was no checks, no credit cards, just cash! This was in 1978, of course.

@gokor: No, you've got it 100% wrong. The cashier is a store employee -- who is getting PAID to WORK and do their job. Their job is customer service and collecting payments. Customer service #1, collecting payment #2. The majoirty of problems in retail stem from poor management, quite often from the top on down to the store level.

@turingtest: You've got it. Many consumers have become whores -- price, price, price, regardless of what they have to go through to get that price. Whether it be rebates, long lines, useless salesholes, CSRs who could care less, dirty stores, receipt-checking rent-a-cops. I vote with my own dollars by refusing to shop at such places. May these type of places (and their workers with inappropriate attitudes) wither away and die. Customers are a business' life blood, not the shareholders. Until they realize that I see no reason to help them stay in business with a misguided business model.

They will REORDER those transactions at many banks from LARGEST TO SMALLEST. SO now instead of 10 proper purchases in the black and ONE gs purchase in the RED you could in theory end up with the GAS PURCHASE FIRST causing an over draft and a $35 fee and NOW those other 10 purchases in there "new speak order" also now "over draft" and you get NO KIDDING 10 more $35 fee's

I had the bank do this to me. I goofed and bought a power strip (hahaha now that I think about it that was FROM comp USA !! hehehe :-) the Philly one in franklin mills during the first round of closings)

Well I was off by $12. so that night I sw the $12 overage and $35 fee. by the time they literally "REWROTE HISTORY" of the last 10 days and they did it in "chunks" to enhance the damage I had $350+ dollars in overage fees. JUST for overdrawing my account by $12 !!!

Needless to say I did NOT pay this and told them where they could shove it.

DO NOT do business with Wachovia.

This is by DEFINITION a "racket" and by Definition FRAUD and EMBEZZLEMENT yet they insist ITS IN THE TOS so its OK.

Fraud is when you cheat to make money. Embezzlement is when you in control of someone elses money ALTER the records to allow you to siphon off there cash (altering my transaction history going back 10 days for a $12 overdraw to result in insane fees)

A racket is when you CREATE the conditions under which your "FEE based" solution is needed.

IE protection money. Protection from who? ME so pay me or I beat you up. Thats a Racket.

Extending you Credit without consent and then rewriting history to EXTEND the likely hood of needing this "credit" and then providing the FEE based solution (over draft protection) IS by definition a Racket.

You see it used to be if you overdrew your account by few cents or dollars the bank just COVERED IT and sent you a friendly notice hey customer you did not have enough money but thats ok we paid it anyway just make a deposit soon ok. NO MORE.

It used to be that overdraft from your own savings account was FREE and they did it efficiently in fixed amounts. IE say $50. so if any more tx's came in you were ok.

NOW they OD the PRECISE amount only. WHY? because they can charge the $8 to $15 fee PER TRANSACTION.

It used to be I used Debit Cards as CC exclusively. It was great. I SUCK at tracking that kind of stuff. When the card stopped working I was out of money. SIMPLE EASY.

Then one day "it worked" and when I logged in I had an overdraft fee. needless I was a bit confused I complained to the bank and they said OH we now extend you "credit" as a convenience to avoid embarrassments etc..

I was FUMING. I said thats not a convenience thats a INSANELY HARSH penalty and Embarrassed ? whos more fool the guy who gets a declined message buying his slurpy leaves without the slurpy without a care or the buy who pid $37 for a $3 slurpy because he has 13 cents to little money to pay for it.

They refunded it and then TURNED THAT DAMNED feature off. 6 months later "it was back" I screamed and yelled again they turned it off again. This continued happening again and again every 4-6 months till after 2 years they said "no" I said what the hell do you mean no its not a request. Turn it off or I am gone. End of Discussion. Manager came over said confused you would close your account over this? I said You want to charge me a $35 "convenience" (said with attitude) fee for what amounts to a calculation error on my part of LESS than the value of this (slammed a quarter on the counter rather hard) ?? ARE YOU NUTS !!

He said he was sorry but the bank policy could not be altered. The "millions of a % APR "credit line" was not COMPULSORY. I closed my account and then said I will be back tommorrow to close my dad's account. (also on the screen since it was a joint account) this was a Business account I actually say the bank manager turn white just a bit when he read the numbers on the screen) but he was still adamate. The COMPULSORY embezzlement was non negotiable.

This happened over days I knew almost ALL banks did this now but at this point it was a matter of principle because I had been with this bank for well over a decade (originally First Union)

I do not take kindly to being KNOWINGLY anal raped.

I guess they are truly able to RAPE tht much out of people that such a policy is more important than keeping customers ESPECIALLY since now they are all doing it so they have nothing to lose. I churn from them to someone else someone else churns from them to this bank etc..

From the Star Tribune

Using a database of 8,500 overdrafts from banks and credit unions as well as reports filed with federal financial institutions, the group found that customers paid a record $17.5 billion in overdraft loan fees in 2006. That accounts for nearly 40 percent of income banks and credit unions collected from fees, up from 27 percent in 2004.

Common banking practices, such as processing the largest check or debit card transaction first and holding deposits for as many as 11 days, unfairly stack the deck, the report charged.

"@sleepydumbdude: Hmm, interesting. Once you pump the gas into your tank, does that automatically turn into a debt you owe? Then, they are required to accept cash."

THIS is a tricky one. it could ACTUALLY be considered THEFT and you could in theory be arrested and charged for it. In a motorhome at these prices even potentially a Felony :-) !!!

You see a debt has to be voluntarily incurred. Voluntary inplies INTENT. If the giving of the debt was "accidental" it may not count as a debt IE theft.

Imagine "eating" a meal and then saying wait you don't accept my credit card? How do you give it back? (the meal) or How do you give back the gas. IE there is no way to "undo" the transaction.

The laws differ from location to location but many times they are required to POST this "no cash" at csh stations or "no bills over" on the pumps. If there is NO sign outside and your permitted to pump first USUALLY you will be ok. But if there is a sign it could get ugly if the gas station wants to be a prick about it.

"hey have not started the policy of having to break up your transactions into $50 increments on a card either."

I have encountered this a few times (very confusing at first) the limit I hit 4 or 5 times was $75 I had to end tx wait reset and pay again.

The reason is this. When you slide your credit card into the machine it has NO WAY of knowing how much "you have" in your account of left in your limit. Usually it will just do a $1 "auth charge" to verify its a valid account BUT if you say have $20 in the account this auth charge WILL succeed and there is NOTHING to stop you from putting $40 in the tank. It will then off course "fail" when it tries to run this $40 charge at the end of the transaction. You can see where this might be an issue :-) so most places have a "pre auth" cap on how much gas you can get to minimize there risk of loss in these situations.

Most people will NEVER KNOW. they will just assume thats all the gas it took to fill the tank and never be the wiser.

I track my mileage meticulously especially on long trips so I know in advance how many gallons I should need usually to withing half a gallon if I wanted to but "brain wise" withing 2 gallons. I have a 35gallon tank so you an see how I can easily spend $100+ to fill it up :-) so when I hit $75 and "knew" it should take another $18 or $19 worth or gas I said something. I also noticed it STOPPED at an even number and refused to let me "pump" any more not even a penny this I found odd (many would just yank it and leave never noticing this) I was then told they limit each CC auth to $75 just socket the pump rerun the card and pump till full.

Befrugalnotcheap
"But what are my rights if it IS a fake 20?"

You have no rights in this regard as far as I know. At least with BANKS you do not. (vendors not so sure but I think its the same)

They keep if You do NOT get it back and you DO NOT get any credit for it. IE you "eat it"

thats why when I get paid in cash I refuse to accept 50 and 100bills and insist on "well used" bills if possible and I meticulously check each and every bill if its larger than a $5. I tear test ie rip the bill where the poly strip is. it will be pretty clear if its fake REAL fast and also READ the denomination ON the poly stripe. If its good enough to fool those tests its good enough to to fool the bank teller too.

It is funny, however, that the person was angry about getting in trouble. Did he not get the memo that he's out of a job in a couple weeks... :)

I suspect that the "asshole customers" that Arrngrim refers to actually represents a minority of all customers.
Retail clerks that believe otherwise, often respond by projecting a negative attitude that is a self perpetuating, Catch 22 loop, which will continue to rotate as long as they take your money with that attitude.

The CompUSAs here are glad to take cash; I've seen many $100 bills being used when I go. The shelves are getting pretty empty, and the TVs are about gone, since they're 25% off. That still isn't too great, unless you find a model that was already discontinued, and that puts it below cost.

BTW, one pizza place here is going to no cash, but because it was robbed last year and two 16-year-old employees were shot to death.

@Keter: yay! If we show the stores that we're informed customers and won't take this sort of crap lying down anymore, they will be forced to change.

And I hate the whole idea of a cashless society. There is just no way to ensure proper oversight of such personal, sensitive information. Modernization isn't always best. If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

I wasn't insulting anyone, I was questioning the logic. Anything over 1k constitutes "big ticket" to me, and automatically goes on a card. I have credit and I use it responsibly. I have the cash and thensome in my checking account for the 42" Sharp Aquos TV I bought today, but I put it on my AmEx and will pay it in full tomorrow. Extended warranty without paying a red cent for some BS store plan, and the ability to chargeback if needed is worth it to me.

I don't feel one way or the other about no cash policies because everything goes on my cards and gets paid off at the end of the month (I'm one of those dreaded "deadbeats"), but if I had an issue with a no cash policy, I'd let corporate know--and then take my business elsewhere. It seems to me that we as consumers wouldn't be dealing with half the shit companies throw at us if we weren't so willing to bend over even after we've been fucked once.

The liquadation vendor is trying to accurately track the iventory... and the money spent for the inventory. Cash payments could allow an employee to easily siphon a portion of the funds collected by altering sales tickets to show a bigger discount. As there is insufficient time to perform an audit during the liquidation to catch the employee fraud it is imperative to implement other security actions.

This is actually quite common with large scale liquidations.

It's funny seeing all of the people on here gripe about CompUSA. Yet for some strange reason, the stores are getting people in them anyways.

As far as the customer service aspects goes, well try being told that you aren't going to have a job soon. The simple fact of the matter is...How many times a day do I have to say "No returns, No exchanges, No we can't mark it down more, No I don't have any Wii's, No we don't have any more shipments, etc.... Yes I do work for CUSA.

It amazes me when someone asks me if they can bring it back or try to exchange this or that...There's a massive amount of yellow signs that all say ALL SALES FINAL NO RETURNS....We're doing all we can to hold it together with...

a)Not knowing when we will be let go because we can't seem to get a final date

b)What we are going to do for jobs

c)How we are going to support OUR families

And yet at the same time we are supposed to bend over backwards for the jerk who wants to yell at me because we don't have any Wii's.

Who cares and whatever right?

Well we did and we don't anymore. There were people at these stores who did know something other than the bullet points and tried to help and we all got it in the end. Thanks guys. Now I've vented and it doesn't change a damn thing.

P.S.: Oh, and wow. CompUSA is on its last breath now, and the irate Consumerists are still here, kicking it when it's down. I've had money of my own to spend for about the last 12 years now, and I've never believed that the people in a retail store are there to help me learn about what they sell. They are there to make sure I don't steal, to tell me in a general way what part of the store something is in and to point me to the bathroom. I can tell by their habit of reading the back of the package before they answer my question that they haven't got a clue about what they sell. And I don't really expect them to. If they had "experts" in a retail store, I know I could expect to pay a lot more for electronics than what I do. Experts invest time in research and education. And paying salesmen to do research and to get an education about the products they sell costs money. And costs like that are tacked on to the cost of what a store sells. You can't have dirt cheap prices, the instant gratification of buying something off the shelf now and have experts in the store to explain the products to you.

Maybe because there are procedures for handling cash that they are no longer set up for. Counting, documenting it, counting drawers, register tills, taking it to the bank, depositing it, locking it in a safe during business hours, keeping security on staff to make sure you don't get robbed, etc. If you are going out of business, you might be cutting back on a lot of expenses. Maybe the proper procedures for handling cash cost a lot of money to impliment, and they want to eliminate that. They will sell everything in the store whether one guy buys it or the next guy does. Now they are looking for somebody to come in, buy a lot of stuff with a credit card, and liquidating everything. I think they are past the point of caring about "loyal customers" anyway.

I also worked retail in a clothing store and I am always very nice to clerks. I once had a lady throw her fitting room number at my head because I had to count the number of items she had on her way out.

I know that credit cards offer additional protections for purchases, but I still pay cash for everything. My only debt is my car. I only buy what I can afford and I still have everything I want. I'm not rich by any means, I'm a public servant. But hasn't "living beyond your means" created a huge problem? Cash should always be an option!

@Arrngrim:

You've got that right. Customers are, on the whole, idiots. I actually consciously don't bother retail workers simply because I have been on that side of things and know what a bunch of morons most people are. My wife recently worked retail and the stories she told me only prove that people are getting worse. And why SHOULD companies care about customer service if screwing people over still results in their shopping there anyway? It's cheaper and easier to screw over your employees AND the customers if there are no consequences to it, and that's the situation we find ourselves in today.

It's like the age of personal irresponsibility these days.

The idea that the purchaser should be insulted for not using a credit card here is absurd. But you're pretty much always a bullheaded idiot, so I'm unsurprised at your reaction.

There should always be ways to buy things anonymously, even if your only motivation is to make sure a purchase remains a surprise to a spouse who has access to your CC records.

There are far more important arguments for these methods to exist, but most Americans don't give a fuck about freedom, so they're not worth arguing.

Or the Dad who threw the comics his son bought at our store and said "Why would you sell my son this shit!" The manager who dealt drugs out the back, the kids who shoplifted. Retail...sucks. And hearing people whine about not getting their discounted item with a blowjob and a smile gets under my skin too.

But that doesn't mean this counter person didn't overreact. She escalated the situation from anthill to mountain. If she'd said "Oh, I'm sorry, we don't accept cash for purchases over blah-blah dollars. It's our policy, what with the closeout and all." rather than yelling or getting security (an...odd step) on the guy. She would have remained in control of the situation, instead she gave that control away by losing her cool.

It's retail, you pick your battles day to day and minute to minute. Losing your shit on a guy over petty crap like this is just not worth it.

Lately, I sigh inwardly anytime someone asks me about the GD Wii, DS, or PSP (I work in video game retail). The ignorance of America is astonishing, we are becoming dumber as a nation every year.

They don't accept cash? Fine, don't do business with them. Most managers/low-level employee's really don't care anymore if they get your business. It's only the fat-cat's up top that rake in all the profits that care, but they're too busy living the high life to pay much attention to their "precious Customer Service".

Having worked in retail, I make damn sure I want something before I buy it. They don't have it, I leave, they give me trouble, I leave. This is America, you can pretty much find whatever you want wherever you want to. Unless you live 100 miles from a major city, in which case, it sucks to be you.

I go to buy a simple pack of soda from the God-forsaken local mega-store (Wal-mart), I see the lines are 10 people deep, the self-checkout's are all off with only one lit-up (and yes it was malfunctioning). I placed the soda on a nearby display, and left, didn't need to drink any soda that night anyway. A luxury item. Now if a store doesn't accept cash for bread and water so you can eat and SURVIVE, then come cry a river.

Commence flaming the lowly retail associate...I hate my job anyway...

On another note, I don't think I've ever heard of something like this. p I paid in $20s for a $180urchase once and the cashier actually thought it was funny.

@KarmaChameleon:

That's my thought - this would be a time when I'd DEFINITELY want credit card protection!

Better yet, this guy should have a friend go into the store first to confirm that the same manager is there and then he should go in and remind him that in his phone call to him he was told: "I know who you are, your the guy that wanted to pay cash. My district manager & corporate called me and read me the riot act over this. Thanks for getting me in trouble!"
He should then tell the store the manager that he will be calling his corporate office to report the content of this response and that the manager hung up on him.

Then he could proceed to go and pay the hundreds of dollars for his item with several bags of un-rolled pennies.

He then hung up on me!"

I'd report this to head office as well, even if his pride is hurt he should act like a mature adult and deal with you as a customer.

Also: Good for you for reporting your concerns, most people (as you know) don't.

I got my big flat panel...Office Max to the rescue! An impressively nice off-brand for a very low price after an instant (at the cash register) rebate. No dead pixels, no problems installing. BTW, I used two strategies I honed from Consumerist...the first unit I looked at was an open box, and I insisted they set it up so I could verify it worked...haha, it didn't! Then I made them open the box on the new unit to prove there was a real product inside. There was, and the guys who were helping me apparently knew exactly what I was talking about when I said why I wanted them to do that. We are making a difference in the level of awareness with what we post here! :o)

* ever try to get anyone on the phone at one of those stores? NOT possible.

* purchasing as a business? You would wait 45+ minutes plus at their service desk and it almost always required a manager to get involved. It was completely consistent. Didn't matter whether you were in Florida, Massachusetts, California, Minnesota - it wasn't a store-level issue.

* this assumed that your business account was even open for acceptance in the eyes of their A/R department. Terms were net 30, we paid around 18 days afterwards... I'd go to our accountant and ask if the account was paid off before going to the store to burn 45+ minutes to buy whatever it was. Usually around 20 minutes into the process you'd find out if the account was on "credit hold."

* have a question about an item? Once you FIND a staff member to help you they will come and read you the bullet points on the shelf tag (Best Buy and Circuit City also offer this experience).

* I completely believe that someone had a problem with cash. CompUSA probably let their contract with an armored car service lapse at that location. Besides, the media tells us we should "fear" cash because it could be one of those so-called North Korean supernotes.

* The two dollar markers, I don't know that I believe those... but an ultraviolet light will authenticate security features of newer cash and credit cards.

(Off topic... McClatchy newspapers did an investigation into supernotes. The supernotes kept up with all 19 expensive changes made by the us treasury and not enough of them went into circulation EVER to cover the huge cost of the printing/paper/design operation. The Swiss national police are discrediting the American claim that the supernotes originated in North Korea because there was no profit in printing them.)

[www.treas.gov]

Summary of above website.

"There is, however, no Federal statute mandating that a private business, a person or an organization must accept currency or coins as for payment for goods and/or services. Private businesses are free to develop their own policies on whether or not to accept cash unless there is a State law which says otherwise."

"No cash". Reminds me of when I was a kid (too many years ago), saved up my money and went to what was then Skaggs Albertson's to buy candy ($5.00 worth). Told by clerk at candy counter he would not accept my pennies. I was soooo upset (I was only 5). I got the attention of many customers who were angry and voicing their outrage. My mom just wanted to leave and never return. The store manager came over and attempted to make it right but I was sooooo upset and confused. I will always remember that and have avoided shopping Albertson's and other associated store names.

In my business, I prefer cash (I get more return as opposed to fees for other forms of payment) and isn't
nice that to accept a credit card agreement you aren't suppose to offer a "if you pay cash, I'll give you discount..."

basically, someone could control your life. pissed off some bank manager ? poof, life savings gone!

After I was rang up, I took out my cash and offered it to the clerk. He asked if I had a credit card I'd like to pay with and I told him I didn't want to pay with credit. He looked nervously at his manager who was seated nearby going over a credit application with another customer, then asked me again, "Are you sure you don't want to pay with credit?" I asked if they didn't accept cash and he said they do, but then gave another glance at his manager and asked if I'd like to sign up for a store credit card.

Screw that. I ended up walking out without buying anything. Stores that either won't take cash or give you such a big runaround over it don't get my business. They want you to pay on credit in hopes they can rake in big fees (which is why they love store-branded credit cards) when all I want to do is pay for the item in full at the point of sale.

THAT is how it's your problem.

Anyway, I could see them getting upset with some jerkoff using a $100 to pay for a $3.99 item, that's just using a store to break your hundred that you asked the bank to give you because you're a jerkoff who wants to look cool. I've told people no to that sort of stuff before, because our store only kept $200 in the register to start the day and that would have killed our drawer until someone got the chance to run to the bank, meaning we would lose sales from people that actually need the change for legit purchases that don't require $95 back in change.

As for their closing store policy, it should be posted several places throughout the store (you know, the ones that no one ever pays attention to and gets pissed off at the cashiers about when they get shot down for being retards), and it probably was. From this report we're only hearing the "poor customer who can do no wrong" side of the story. Honestly, the cashier could care less what you bought, or how you pay for it as long as a) they get the sale b) they're not going to get in trouble for how they sell it.

Here's a tip for asshole customers; cashiers get paid shit and treated likewise by their employers. Don't stockpile more shit onto them because you're a piece of shit and want to think you're some tough guy.

WOW! He shoulda tape recorded the manager being a dick (after he got in trouble) & hung up on him. Posted it online & then sent it to Comp. USA corporate ...... so that the dick manager got in even MORE trouble. LOL!

Not accepting cash is just wrong. Not everyone has a credit card. Especially a lot of older people & low-income people (who often deal exclusively in cash)

Customer Service in the USA HAS definitely gone down in the US! It is the last priority in business due to cut backs, etc. It really should be their first priority. That and quality of their goods.

@homerjay: You beat me to it. I would have went back down there and got all up in his face about "where you going to work next so I can avoid it" and that.

@digitalgimpus: [en.wikipedia.org]

Or maybe I'm wrong, I'm almost always using plastic at the pump.

@chouchou: The US 100 dollar bill is one of the MOST counterfeited bills in the world - that's why.

Don't want cash/large bills? Fine by me - just post an easy to see sign.

Years ago my brother-in-law returned an item at a store, then went to buy something else. Paid with $20 bill he got from return desk. This was shortly after they re-designed US bills.

The clerk at the counter goes ape-shit because - I kid you not - "The bill does not have a BAR CODE on it!!"

Yelling at them, called security, they were taken in back to be questioned! When manager heard the problem he apologized FAST.

I only occasionally frequented my local CompUSA, but when I did there was always a weird vibe about the place. Too many salespeople, and almost never any customers. Screwy kiosked PC's, and never any of the models you might actually want in stock and an ever increasing blend of toys, giant plasma TV's, and nerf-herder food. I've noticed MicroCenter is starting to drift this direction too... with a mark down section that seems to grow with every visit.

"Goodbye CompUSA, I hardly knew thee..."

The words of a man with NOTHING to lose. What are they going to do? Fire him???

I know this is legal, but it shouldn't be. Cash should be accepted no matter what.

How Ironic. . . . CompUSA has stopped paying rebates by check. The only way they pay rebates is by CompUSA visa debit card.

Each time someone pays debit/credit card, store pays to the bank for the transaction. Plus, if a credit card is fraudulent, store is left with nothing.

So can anyone explain me why?

@smarty:I would have brought $100.00 of loose, assorted change in a paint bucket.

I hope refusing cash in not the next retailer fad. I'm leaning more towards cash with all the ID theft and retailers selling your transaction data.

Customer service in america is dead. It was KIA by large corporations fighting for Liberty, Freedom and the Bottom Line. It was survived by its wife Lower Prices and children crappy merchandise and minimum wage.

Lesson here, if you want a Mac, go to an Apple Store or order at www.apple.com

"Thanks for getting me in trouble" is always funny when someone actually means "I fucked up got caught."

Douché.

(not a typo).

HP had just released its first photoprinter and a woman came into the CompUSA I was stationed at - I knew her from another store I'd been at not too far away and I knew she was bought expensive and in bulk. She asked me about the printer (about a $600 item) and she wanted it, but she also wanted to see it work. That's fair, and most stores had a demo set up but the CompUSAs didn't for some stupid reason.

I went to the departmental manager to see if he could get some of the photo paper for me. He told me I had to see the store manager. The store manager demanded I buy the paper to use for the demo because he didn't want to risk losing any money.

I'm trying to help this man sell a $600 printer - plus paper and toner - and he won't rip open a $15 dollar pack of paper? And then when the woman left to go to a store that would demo it, the store manager screamed at me in front of his employees for not buying the paper so I could sell the printer (I made no commissions - I was there to be in-store tech support and help customers buy what they actually needed).

This sort of stuff only ever happened at CompUSAs. Even Best Buy stores had smarter managers (granted, we're talking ten years ago).

Good riddance to CompUSA.

Sheesh, poor guy now he might not have long term job security with the company.