Series of Subtle Differences: Part 4 - Paying with Credit Cards
Maybe the British were still smarting over John Hancock’s outsized signature on the Declaration of Independence when they decided that consumers did not need to sign for purchases with credit cards. Instead, when I pay in (the now more reasonably priced) pounds, I put my card in the machine and then punch in my PIN number.
Waiting for a waiter to bring one of two terminals (and one is always broken) can extend dinner longer than expected. But hey, “bad dates” faded in the rear-view mirror years ago, so what’s the rush? And now I know that my card is not used to order illicit videos because it is never out of sight.
For the curious, this will never happen in the US. Merchants will not stomach the cost to change all of their payment terminals with no incremental benefit (and there is not one for merchants). The change happened here because of government regulation.
