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Admirals Clubs went "cashless" Oct 1, 2015

Admirals Clubs went "cashless" Oct 1, 2015

Old Oct 2, 2015, 2:10 pm
  #1  
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Admirals Clubs went "cashless" Oct 1, 2015

I was doing some random research on Admirals Clubs, and ran across the following in the news section:

"Beginning October 1, we will only accept credit and debit cards as a form of payment inside our lounges. Cash will no longer be accepted. This includes payment for items like:

Food and beverages
One-day passes
New memberships and renewals
Conference room rentals
The change will align our lounge and onboard payment options, and will allow us to serve you better."

Not that this is at all shocking or anything, but I really like the last bit.

It was done to serve us better
teemuflyer is offline  
Old Oct 2, 2015, 2:15 pm
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Why is this an issue? Maybe there has been cases of something as minor as insufficient change? Or maybe it saves queue time from the person in front fumbling around looking for the last dime to pay? Would be great if everything is card based and I don't have to ever carry cash with me again. Safer for me, and more reward point/miles/cashback earned.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 2:17 pm
  #3  
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It could be inconvenient to pay for all small F&B charges with a credit card, although this might lead to fewer cash tips for servers--either lower total tips or a bigger fraction of tips that are reported and taxed.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 3:51 pm
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Sweet! That means that they can't accept my tips any more.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 4:05 pm
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Should have the same benefit as the inflight cashless policy: Less theft of cash by employees. Credit and Debit card transaction slips don't seem to get up and walk off on their own as often as cash.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 6:23 pm
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But really how are we supposed to tip? I always tip a dollar or two on the house selections I order. The bartenders are always very appreciative too.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 6:26 pm
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Originally Posted by FWAAA
Should have the same benefit as the inflight cashless policy: Less theft of cash by employees. Credit and Debit card transaction slips don't seem to get up and walk off on their own as often as cash.
BINGO!!!

And I'm sure the bartender/server will be happy to accept your cash tip!
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 6:46 pm
  #8  
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Originally Posted by GotCalcio4
But really how are we supposed to tip? I always tip a dollar or two on the house selections I order. The bartenders are always very appreciative too.
Cash isn't banned from the premises. American Airlines just won't accept it for payment. I'm sure the bartenders will still gladly accept your cash for tips.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 8:18 pm
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Originally Posted by chrisny2
Cash isn't banned from the premises. American Airlines just won't accept it for payment. I'm sure the bartenders will still gladly accept your cash for tips.
Good point. It's been a long day
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 8:32 pm
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I tend to charge jus about everything in life so this doesn't really bother me (though I tended to pay chase if I bought, say, a bag of chips in the AC because I felt like a jerk charging those. No more!)

My only concern with this is what if (as always seems to happen) I only have a 20 on me. How do I get change for tipping the bartender? Guess I'll have to remember to break the 20 at Hudson News in advance. I certainly hope this doesn't impact the tips bartenders get at the AC.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 8:35 pm
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Have no fear. Anybody worth their salt who works in a tipping industry will make sure the change is available for you.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 8:36 pm
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It saves accounting effort. No need now to count and process cash or do a night deposit at the bank. Using CC and DC completely automates the accounting process.

More than makes up the lost revenue due to CC fees.

In Europe some businesses no longer take cash. Again easier accounting and trips to the bank.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 9:00 pm
  #13  
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Probably makes a lot of sense from a management perspective. And I doubt that there are any Admirals Club members who don't have a credit card.

But this move as well as many other similar ones I have seen open a question for me. There used to be a law that cash was always acceptable for debts in the U.S. What happened to it?
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 9:30 pm
  #14  
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Originally Posted by ty97
My only concern with this is what if (as always seems to happen) I only have a 20 on me. How do I get change for tipping the bartender? Guess I'll have to remember to break the 20 at Hudson News in advance. I certainly hope this doesn't impact the tips bartenders get at the AC.
I solved that problem a long time ago when I began stuffing ones and fives into a pocket of my laptop bag (personal item). That pocket also contains several small ziploc bags, each holding an assortment of leftover foreign currencies.

In the old days, that assortment of ones and fives frequently enabled me to help when the FAs needed change. The reward for that was typically yet another $10 bottle of wine. Even today, having that wad of small bills in my travel bag makes it easy to tip bartenders, bellmen and others without having to keep a wallet full of small bills.
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Old Oct 2, 2015, 9:34 pm
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Originally Posted by Dr. HFH
But this move as well as many other similar ones I have seen open a question for me. There used to be a law that cash was always acceptable for debts in the U.S. What happened to it?
No law requires retailers to accept cash for goods and services:

http://www.treasury.gov/resource-cen...al-tender.aspx
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