# is it legal for a merchant to refuse cash? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 10, 2010, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649 "2010-06-10T14:08:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/21 "2010-06-10T15:47:02Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Okay. But if they did sell you let’s say two iPads on a card and then you went and sold them for cash to someone else, how would they know about it? Well, if you then went back to buy a few more _with the same cc_ they would know. ---
**Author:** ![Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tastes_of_chocolate/32/3232_2.png) [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tastes_of_Chocolate)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/22 "2010-06-10T16:09:09Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Okay. But if they did sell you let’s say two iPads on a card and then you went and sold them for cash to someone else, how would they know about it? > [@gazpacho](#): > > They may or they may not. The point is not to catch every transaction that Steve doesn’t like. But to limit them. > [@kayaker](#): > > Well, if you then went back to buy a few more _with the same cc_ they would know. To anyone that bought an iPad, does the store record the serial number when you buy it? ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/23 "2010-06-10T17:12:05Z")
> [@Folly](#): > > They don’t want people buying lots of them, breaking the protection (jailbreaking), and then reselling them. 😕 How would accepting cash make them any more vulnerable to that? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/24 "2010-06-10T17:31:52Z")
By tying your purchase to a credit card, they can keep track of how many Ipads have been bought using that credit card. It doesn’t necessarily block all excessive purchases from Apple’s point of view, but it’s enough to discourage a lot of them. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/25 "2010-06-10T17:35:44Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > 😕 > > How would accepting cash make them any more vulnerable to that? By requiring plastic they can track where someone is buying unusual quantites of products, even if they go to multiple retail outlets. They presume that if **Skald the Rhymer** is buying 10 units he probably plans to resell 9 of them. If, on the other hand, **Skald, LLC** is equipping his minions, they will be happy to work out a business deal for him allowing him a discount. It was necessary for me to rent a car a few months ago and the Enterprise office that I went to had prominantly displayed signs that they would not accept cash and that a debit or credit card was required. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/26 "2010-06-10T18:02:30Z")
> [@Projammer](#): > > If, on the other hand, **Skald, LLC** is equipping his minions, they will be happy to work out a business deal for him allowing him a discount. If Overlord!Skald existed, he’d be stealing 'em anyway, even if buying them made better business sense. It’s the principle of the thing. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/27 "2010-06-10T18:10:14Z")
> [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](#): > > To anyone that bought an iPad, does the store record the serial number when you buy it? I’m pretty sure they’ve done so both times I’ve bought iPods, so I would be surprised if they didn’t do so for the iPad. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/28 "2010-06-10T18:14:41Z")
[Here](http://www.protocolsnow.com/2010/04/17/how-i-went-from-apple-store-newbie-to-lifetime-ban-in-one-week/)’s a blog posting from a guy who was buying multiple iPads to resell to international members of a gaming forum. After he bought a few of them, he found that he was banned from ever buying them again. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/29 "2010-06-10T20:28:03Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > There’s also the counterfeit concerns - there are few businesses here still taking $100 bills (and I think fifties are being turned down, too). We got a $100 bill from Wal\*Mart one day for cash back, and we were starting to think we’d have to go to a bank to be able to use that stupid thing. Safeway grudgingly accepted it (after the manager was called over). Some businesses (like convenience stores in “certain parts” of town) have strict limits on how much money can be in the register at any one time (usually $100 or less) and require employees make regular safe-drops into an automated safe (which they may or may not be able to open). I used to work in one of those places and not only could we never have more than $100 in the till ($50 at night) anything larger than a $10 bill bypassed the cash drawer and went right into the safe. So anytime someone came in with a $100 and wanted to spend less than about $50 we either had to decline the sale or ask them to wait until enough other customers payed in cash so we’d have enough change (_nobody_, not even managers were allowed to open the safe just to make change). Some people got pissed at either option. Now when I first started we still allowed customers to pump their gas before they payed during daylight (only place in town that still did) so we did get customers who’s fill their tank with say $15 of gas then come into pay with a $100 bill. Since they\* already had gas in their tank \*(thus owing us a debt) we had to accept the hundred (but we _still_ couldn’t open the safe). Our solution was to (\*after \*we they handed us the c-note) that they’d either have to wait until we build up enough change or accept alot of $1 bills and rolled coins back (we kept a small bag of singles and a box of rolled coins under the counter). I once had to give a woman (middle-aged soccor-mom, designer clothes, and a new minivan) a $25 box of _rolled pennies_ in change because she wouldn’t stop screaming and cursing at us long enough for us to build up any change or wait on other customers. Guess how much gas she bought? Eight dollars. She did it just to break her hundred and someone didn’t notice the bright red signs at the pump warning that he might not be able to accept fifties or hundreds and to please check beforehand if paying with those. A sizable portion of our regular consisted of drug dealers, prostitutes, & their pimps and (hence carrying alot of cash in big bills). For the most part they were perfectly happy to wait quietly off to the side if we needed to wait to build up enough cash. Usually though they’d spend most of it in the store so giving change wasn’t much of a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/30 "2010-06-10T20:49:30Z")
If you obtain goods or services by promising to pay for them after (such as ordering a meal in a restaurant and paying at the end) that is a ‘debt’. Otherwise the merchant’s conditions of sale and price sticker are an ‘invitation to treat’ and neither party is under an obligation to make a deal. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/31 "2010-06-10T22:46:23Z")
> [@prettydorky](#): > > yeah, they could, but your card has your name, address, _child’s kindergarten teacher_, and blood type all tied to it. Whoever came up with THAT brilliant security policy never had Miss Wolfengarber for kindergarten. I’ve seen hardened Bank VPs bring up my card’s metadata, see Miss Wolfengarber’s rancid-cottage-cheese face, and retch into their Armani sport coats. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/32 "2010-06-10T22:59:08Z")
> [@gazpacho](#): > > They only allow a few ipads to be sold to any specific credit card. This makes it harder for some guy to buy 50 iPads and do things that Apple doesn’t like. Are they also restricting the use of prepaid credit cards? I can go to my bank and buy a prepaid Visas for no fee, so it would only be a slight inconvenience to have to buy multiple prepaid cards to purchase 50 iPads. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/33 "2010-06-10T23:16:32Z")
Just for the sake for fighting ignorance, Apple had ending the practice of not taking cash for iPads: [http://consumerist.com/2010/05/apple-store-now-willing-to-accept-hard-currency.html](http://consumerist.com/2010/05/apple-store-now-willing-to-accept-hard-currency.html) It was mainly to keep people from buying 50 when they were released and reselling them for high profit. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2010, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/34 "2010-06-10T23:37:34Z")
Above answers noted. But, . . . . . . if a store had advertised a certain item for sale for $100 but then declined to accept your cash payment for said item, could they not be charged with misleading advertising? (a crime in at least some parts of Canada, where it may actually be called something along the lines of ‘false and misleading’ or ‘deceptive’ advertising). To stretch it further, could the store not be considered to have _contracted_ to give you the item upon receipt of $100 from you, and thus be in breach of contract if they refuse to complete the transaction? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/35 "2010-06-11T03:07:27Z")
No, advertising is considered an “invitation to offer” under common law contract law. They can get in trouble fir false advertising for lying about the price or the goods, or for deliberately not having the advertised goods in stock (“bait and switch”), but they aren’t obligated to accept any particular form of payment and they aren’t obligated to do business with any particular viewer of the ad. ---
**Author:** ![Yarster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/7c8e57/32.png) [@Yarster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yarster)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/36 "2010-06-11T20:18:40Z")
In my own experience, the use of ‘credit cards’ only can be due to issues with untrustworthy employees or being in situations where large quantities of cash cannot be safely stored during the day. Think about your typical huge tradeshow like Comic-Con. If you are at a booth selling some popular and expensive toy, you may suddenly find yourself with thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars with a couple of cloth curtains around your booth that are otherwise your only protection from someone reaching in when you’re not looking and stealing some of the cash. Accepting credit cards eliminates a lot of that hassle. At Comic-Con, you also have lots of ‘limited edition’ items that are “one per buyer/credit card only”. Mattel does this every year. They keep a record of the credit cards used, so yes, you could just use a series of different pre-paid cards to get around this, but most people don’t think to do that so it isn’t much risk. And meanwhile, if you are a vendor in a random city setting up a booth, you may need to hire part time help to help run it. If cash was involved, you might find some of your help to be less than honest. Yes, these same people could steal credit card information as well, but most minimum wage thieves just aren’t that sophisticated. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/37 "2010-06-11T20:35:09Z")
For businesses like hotels and car rental agencies, the final amount to be owed is not known before they give you the service. It makes sense for them toinsist on a card, because it’s easier for them to charge the card than it is to make you hand over the cash. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/38 "2010-06-11T22:18:34Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > I once had to give a woman (middle-aged soccor-mom, designer clothes, and a new minivan) a $25 box of _rolled pennies_ in change because she wouldn’t stop screaming and cursing at us long enough for us to build up any change or wait on other customers. Guess how much gas she bought? > > Eight dollars. She did it just to break her hundred and someone didn’t notice the bright red signs at the pump warning that he might not be able to accept fifties or hundreds and to please check beforehand if paying with those. > > A sizable portion of our regular consisted of drug dealers, prostitutes, & their pimps and (hence carrying alot of cash in big bills). For the most part they were perfectly happy to wait quietly off to the side if we needed to wait to build up enough cash. Usually though they’d spend most of it in the store so giving change wasn’t much of a problem. I pretty much had already figured that pimps, whores and drug dealers were better quality people than your average soccer mom. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/39 "2010-06-11T22:19:13Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > For businesses like hotels and car rental agencies, the final amount to be owed is not known before they give you the service. It makes sense for them toinsist on a card, because it’s easier for them to charge the card than it is to make you hand over the cash. Hotels at least require you to provide a card, but are happy to settle your bill with cash. When I started in AT&T they did not let you use credit cards for business travel. Airfare and rental cars were direct billed, and you got a cash advance to pay for meals and hotel. They eventually saw the light. I don’t know if rental car companies will accept cash when you return the car. Another example of refusing cash is that on airplanes today you must pay for drinks and what passes for food with a credit card. Flight attendants no longer accept cash. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649/40 "2010-06-12T00:30:52Z")
Just for comparison. Here in Peru all merchants have the legal obligation of accepting any and all Peruvian currency. You could, in theory, pay a car with a bunch of small denomination coins. There was a case of someone paying a court-imposed fine with 100,000 coins. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-legal-for-a-merchant-to-refuse-cash/542649.md?page=3)