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If you have ever spent a non-trivial amount of time in a bar, you can see that people with credit cards run up tabs due to a myriad of events that include inten

by jack9 9y ago

If you have ever spent a non-trivial amount of time in a bar, you can see that people with credit cards run up tabs due to a myriad of events that include intentional bad decisions or irresponsibility (like being too drunk to remember to pay before jetting off to another destination). These tabs are generally held for a number of hours, days or weeks (depending on familiarity with the parties involved) before being elevated to a more serious consideration.

Symbiote 9y ago
Is it normal in <your country> for the bar to take a credit card when opening a tab? That's the normal method in Britain -- your credit card is generally put in a little booklet behind the bar, so they can charge it if you forget at the end of the night¹. Alternatively, they may take a payment upfront -- for example, if a large group of teenagers have booked a private area of a nightclub and put £500 up for a tab. The drinks continue until the upfront money is spent. I assume the situation is a little more relaxed for the regulars in a rural pub. ¹ They won't have your PIN, but they can still run the transaction -- though it's easier for the cardholder for dispute.
- chii 9y ago
  that's not really a 'tab' in the original sense as implied by the OP. a tab is where you dont pay at all for an extended amount bof time, and settle afterwards. for example, you might settle monthly, or yearly. i do think this kind of tab doesn't happen very often.
wdewind 9y ago
That's like arguing that restaurants are extending credit because they charge you at the end of the meal. The "keep it open and then you forget to pay" type tabs are very different than having a long running tab at a bar, which is not super common and is what I thought we were talking about. One is much closer to credit than another. Regardless, neither are significantly meaningful in the larger credit market.

by jack9 9y ago

Symbiote 9y ago

Is it normal in <your country> for the bar to take a credit card when opening a tab? That's the normal method in Britain -- your credit card is generally put in a little booklet behind the bar, so they can charge it if you forget at the end of the night¹. Alternatively, they may take a payment upfront -- for example, if a large group of teenagers have booked a private area of a nightclub and put £500 up for a tab. The drinks continue until the upfront money is spent. I assume the situation is a little more relaxed for the regulars in a rural pub. ¹ They won't have your PIN, but they can still run the transaction -- though it's easier for the cardholder for dispute.

chii 9y ago
that's not really a 'tab' in the original sense as implied by the OP. a tab is where you dont pay at all for an extended amount bof time, and settle afterwards. for example, you might settle monthly, or yearly. i do think this kind of tab doesn't happen very often.

wdewind 9y ago

That's like arguing that restaurants are extending credit because they charge you at the end of the meal. The "keep it open and then you forget to pay" type tabs are very different than having a long running tab at a bar, which is not super common and is what I thought we were talking about. One is much closer to credit than another. Regardless, neither are significantly meaningful in the larger credit market.