Okay, at PPL Motorhomes, we’ve all heard about credit card fraud, identity theft and all of those other horror stories that seem to happen to others, but never really expect it to happen to us. I hate to admit it, but I learned a lesson the hard way. I was checking out at one of our favorite discount stores and fell victim to a credit card fraud tactic. Most people know that I never meet a stranger and always chat with the cashiers and others in line. As I was completing my transaction, the cashier asked me for my credit card as I was about to swipe it in the machine.
I reluctantly handed it to him and asked why I could not swipe it myself. He explained the credit card machine had been acting up all morning. Moments later he asked me to sign my name on the same machine that was supposedly on the fritz. I was a bit alarmed and immediately asked for my card back only to see my card laying next to his register next to his cell phone. I asked what he had his phone there for and was given a story about texting his friend and other nonsense. At that moment I had the strangest feeling that something seemed a little strange about the entire transaction. Not wanting to cause a scene or become targeted in some way, I took my purchases and went directly to my car where I called the credit card company.
At first, the very nice lady at Discover acted as if I was a bit crazy when I tried to explain that I thought my card might have been compromised in some way, but she assured me that she would put an alert on the card. Within minutes the charges started appearing on my account. Apparently the cashier had taken a picture of my card and sent it out to all of his friends who went crazy placing orders that I was apparently paying for. Fortunately for me, Discover contacted me and the account was closed within a couple of hours. The best thing of all was that the call I made to the credit card company, along with the fact that I knew exactly when and who had done this has since lead to the arrest of that same cashier.
Apparently the store actually had video surveillance of his actions, and when they put it all together…Bingo! Now the moral of this story is…Pay attention to your surroundings, protect your credit cards, even from employees of the shops you visit. Especially when you are RVing. Furthermore, never be embarrassed to call and report suspicious actions. I can’t help but think that if this happened to me, it certainly can happen to someone else. In fact, I may have saved someone else from a horrible experience!