Ted, Melissa, and anonymous,
Thank you for starting a good discussion on this 'hot topic' of credit card acceptance.
First, I agree with many that cabdrivers SHOULD NOT BE REQUIRED TO ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS.
Second, I believe that we have good grounds to challenge any law requiring us to accept credit cards in the proper court. We might win a case like this; we might not.
I think the issue could be decided on the fact that the cabdriver can not be guaranteed payment for his services until he is actually paid, that is, he turns in his credit card receipts to the cashier. Even then, there is a chance that something might 'go wrong' which, at best, forces the cabdriver to waste time defending his legitimate transactions.
All the 'protections' that a cabdriver might have to successfully avoid improper non-payment for his service are simply too inefficient when considering the relative low amounts of the transactions. If you have to fight to defend a $50.00 credit card transaction for even half-an-hour, it has lost near half of its value. $5.00 transactions are barely worth the time it takes to process them, if that much.
If we had the OPTION to accept credit cards, any PROBLEM with credit card acceptance would be OUR PROBLEM TO FIX ALONE.
Because we are FORCED BY THE CITY to accept credit cards, the PROBLEMS with credit card acceptance and the requirement itself are not only PROBLEMS FOR US CABDRIVERS TO SOLVE...they are also a NATURAL RESPONSIBILITY of the CITY, especially the DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER SERVICES, who must WORK WITH US to FIX THE PROBLEMS associated with credit card acceptance if they truly want to encourage the practice, whatever their reasoning.
But third, and most importantly, I BELIEVE THAT ALL CABDRIVERS SHOULD ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS.
I know that many of you might think I am holding an unpopular position amongst cabdrivers. You are proabably correct. But, I didn't enter this public arena to become 'popular'; I'm already as 'popular' or 'unpopular' as I need to be. I entered this public arena to say what needs to be said and to do what needs to be done.
THE CITY MUST WORK CLOSELY WITH SEVERAL CABDRIVERS TO FIX THE PROBLEMS WITH CREDIT CARD ACCEPTANCE. OUR GENERAL RELUCTANCE TO ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS IS COMPLEX; IT IS NOT SIMPLY BECAUSE 'WE DON'T WANT TO' OR 'YOU DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT TO FORCE US'.
Let me tell you why I have frustrations with accepting credit cards...maybe you have similar experiences or other concerns you could share with us here...
#1- The process of getting an approval code to ensure that I get paid and not screwed (which is a lot better than getting screwed and not paid) TAKES TOO LONG!!! IT TAKES MUCH LONGER THAN IT SHOULD!!! IT CAN BE IMPROVED!!! THIS IS NOT 'WISHFUL THINKING'!!!
Many customers express this same frustration with us! This makes it double- or triple-frustrating for us cabdrivers, because it is beyond our reasonable ability to control. This affects not only the personal experience for both the cabdriver and the passenger at hand, it also reflects poorly on CABDRIVERS in the EYES of the RIDING PUBLIC, when it should be directed at the CAB OWNERS, ESPECIALLY THE LARGE FLEETS, for installing inferior systems.
But, I can't place as much 'blame' on them as some others would. Cab owners, large and small, are businessman too. They make decisions based on economic factors. Superior credit card systems simply cost more money.
We cabdrivers are not presented with enough credit cards (and we never will be) to make an improved credit card system a 'selling point' to THEIR customers or potential customers (us cabdrivers) to stay in or join their fleet.
What I mean is this: not enough cabdrivers (if any at all) are ever going to decide to lease from one owner instead of another 'because they have a better credit card system'. There are much more important decisions we cabdrivers make when we pick the supplier of our cabs.
Who is to 'blame', that is, who are the ones MOSTLY responsible for improving the credit card systems?
It is the CITY OF CHICAGO, for allowing the cab companies to use such shoddy equipment. They can improve such systems by fiat, that is, they simply change the rules and regulations to require cab medallion owners and associations to install and use faster and more reliable equipment.
They should do so, but only after they work WITH the CABDRIVERS to MAKE SURE the systems they are approving meet OUR MINIMUM STANDARDS. I don't care if they claim that they already did this...whatever process they have in place now has only produced approval for crappy credit card systems. WE CAN ALL DO A BETTER JOB - TOGETHER!
#2 and up...I'll let the rest of you 'fill-in-the-blanks' here. I'm certain that several of the frustrations with credit cards we all experience we will recognize the moment someone posts them here, and I'm certain there are other frustrations others have had that some of us have yet to displease us...
I'll be watching and commenting. Let's get this issue out here and 'solve' it. We can make the necessary changes if we attack the problem together.
What is LOWEST on my list is this issue of the '5% taken from us' when we transact a credit card. The underlying problem here is simply the fact that we are ALREADY UNDERPAID, so any more 'taking' is simply an aggravation to our injury. The solution is for us cabdrivers to get the just and reasonable FARE INCREASE WE ALL DESERVE!!!
It IS still on my list, though, because we must make sure that we are not being 'overcharged' with a fee that is excessive. If, at the end of the day, we have been sufficiently compensated for the day, we shouldn't (and won't) worry that much about each transaction. Nobody should 'get rich' off of us, but the basic problem is that we are operating much too close to 'break even' that we have to watch every god-****ed cent!
WE NEED A FARE INCREASE. ASAP. That is MY priority and I think it should become OUR priority. That is up to YOU to decide...
Thanks again to Ted, Melissa, and Anonymous for their contributions, even when I might not agree with them. I can disrespect with the worst of them; I will give respect to the best. Melissa and Ted, both who I know personally, are two of the best!
-Mike Foulks, President, Chicago Cabdriver Organization (CCO)
P.S. I'll post a LOT more on this issue in due time...
--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---
Replying to:
December 12th 2007
In last months Chicago Sun-Times, there was an article informing the citizens where kiosk can be located to pay water bills and parking tickets. What angers me, why the city is charging people to pay bills and tickets at kiosk using a personal check or credit card, but cab drivers can't charge extra from the passengers for paying with the credit card? The city will never get the respect from cab drivers.
I hope Mayor Daley and commissioner Norma Reyes gets caught for something, and joins former Governor George Ryan in federal prison. They deserve to be locked up and throw away the key.
Ted,
I am aware that you started this post; anonymous and Melissa, especially, are the ones who replied to begin this discussion...
-Your Friend, Mike
P.S. Hurry up and fix your computer!!!
--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---
Replying to:
Mike,
I was the one who posted the message that you replied to about the article I've found in the Chicago Sun-Times. It was not anomynous.
Ted Budzynski
This guy not real cabdriver.
He only leases to get car.
He get disability from government.
Mr. Pruit,
Thanks for making me laugh out loud on 'XMAS'. Let me assure you that I am a 'real cabdriver'. Everyone else, I'm sure, needs no reassuring.
I wish I could get some 'disability from government', but I don't think it would be enough to lease a cab as a 'car'.
I'm starting to think that all of us cabdrivers might be crazy to keep on driving a cab in these worsening conditions. Alas, cabdrivers get no subsidy!
-Mike Foulks
--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---
Replying to:
This guy not real cabdriver.
He only leases to get car.
He get disability from government.
