The same reason why gas stations all over the US assumes everyone that uses them is an American therefore has a ZIP code for verification. We are the 99% of the users of the gas station pumps here in the US, therefore it doesn't make sense for gas pumps in the US to consider about the possibility that a 1% tourist from Canada would want to use their VISA cards whose country doesn't use five digit ZIP codes nor even consider that their postal codes have letters in them.

The same reason why we don't expect minimum wage earning Taco Bell employees here in the US to know that a Japanese person who whips out a JCB card or a Chinese person whipping out a Union Pay card can pay for their 99 cent taco by processing it just like a Discover Card. Why would Taco Bell would even train their employees about that? Ninety-nine percent of the people who visit a Taco Bell in the US are Americans, why would they even care about the 1% possibility that a Japanese or Chinese person might whip out a JCB or Union Pay card? Do we give a .... if the Japanese or the Chinese starts getting angry about the service? Heck no, the answer is "you're not our major clientele, we could care less, welcome to America."

Now the tables are turned when we visit abroad, let's use the UK example as you mentioned. Ninety-nine percent of the cardholders in the UK have chip cards. The tables are turned and we become the 1% when we visit the UK; we're not their major clientele. So why would they care about the 1% issue of Americans who still uses outdated cards? If 99% of their clientele has chip cards, they're not going to spend thousands of British pounds to re-write their entire SOP manual for their minimum wage earning cashiers for the sake of "in the event that you ever see a weird American who have cards without a chip..." Again, the tables are turned. If you become angry about this service they could care less, "you're not our major clientele, we could care less, welcome to the UK."

At least the problem for you was easy because you were able to communicate with the cashier or the bartender to take it because you and the merchant speak the same English language, albeit with accent differences. Try going through the same experience in a country where they don't speak English and the issue becomes more of a headache.

Kinda puts into perspective how we pay ridiculous amount in annual fees and this issue has never been considered, eh? Doesn't it strike odd that Americans pay $300 in annual fees for a AMEX Platinum card which only has the mag-stripe when other countries' AMEX Platinum cards have both the mag-stripe and the EMV chip so that it actually works all over the world? Last time I checked, it was called AMERICAN EXPRESS, not CANADIAN EXPRESS. Then why does an AMEX Platinum card issued in Canada be more advanced and be a true global card than our cards, while we spend $300 in annual fees for a card that's only "theoretically" supposed to work abroad because they don't incorporate a chip on to US issued AMEX Platinum cards. FAIL


No chipped debit cards in the US have been issued yet; they're all credit cards. You receive miles/points/rewards when you use them through the chip instead of swiping and signing. The BA Chase card with the EMV Chip-and-Signature receives Avios points whether you use it via the outdated mag-stripe method or the chip-and-Signature method. It's the same thing how we receive miles whether we use the mag-stripe or the stupid cell phone sticker RFID tag that Citibank issues for our AAdvantage cards. The method of transaction don't matter; if it posts as a credit purchase you earn miles. Besides, how do you think the Brits/Canadians/Germans/Japanese earn miles on their credit cards? Do you think the only way they earn miles is when they visit the US and do the swipe and sign? Of course not; they receive the same rewards through chip-and-PIN back home.