4 ms·

There is a requirement to accept cash as payment for debt. This does not apply to the typical retail case, where the seller can simply not proceed with the tran

There is a requirement to accept cash as payment for debt. This does not apply to the typical retail case, where the seller can simply not proceed with the transaction.

toast0 6y ago
If you order ice cream and it's scooped for you before you pay (as is customary in ice cream shoppes I've frequentrd), you have incurred a debt.
- 120391583 6y ago
  Do they actually give you the ice cream before you pay?
  - Turing_Machine 6y ago
    Physical transfer doesn't really matter. Either you've incurred a debt (in which case they're legally required to take cash) or you haven't (in which case you're free to walk out of the store, leaving the ice cream to melt). The store would need to require that you pay before the scooping began to avoid this, IMO.
    - 120391583 6y ago
      Right, but if you've taken possession, you've definitely incurred a debt. If they've scooped the ice cream but haven't handed it to you, while there may technically be a debt at that point, I expect most stores would just throw the ice cream out if you insisted on paying with a payment method they don't accept.
      - Turing_Machine 6y ago
        > I expect most stores would just throw the ice cream out if you insisted on paying with a payment method they don't accept. Yes. And? If enough people do this, perhaps they'll change their policy.
        120391583 6y ago
        If you can order the ice cream and take possession of it before paying, you've incurred a debt. At that point, the store must be willing to accept cash (or forgive the debt altogether). End result: you've got ice cream. If you order the ice cream but don't take possession of it until you pay, the store is free to reject your cash payment and not give you the ice cream. End result: no ice cream. If this occurs frequently enough, the waste from the store having to prepare and throw out ice cream might prompt them to change their policy, but that's not an immediate solution.

There is a requirement to accept cash as payment for debt. This does not apply to the typical retail case, where the seller can simply not proceed with the transaction.

toast0 6y ago

If you order ice cream and it's scooped for you before you pay (as is customary in ice cream shoppes I've frequentrd), you have incurred a debt.

120391583 6y ago
Do they actually give you the ice cream before you pay?
- Turing_Machine 6y ago
  Physical transfer doesn't really matter. Either you've incurred a debt (in which case they're legally required to take cash) or you haven't (in which case you're free to walk out of the store, leaving the ice cream to melt). The store would need to require that you pay before the scooping began to avoid this, IMO.
  - 120391583 6y ago
    Right, but if you've taken possession, you've definitely incurred a debt. If they've scooped the ice cream but haven't handed it to you, while there may technically be a debt at that point, I expect most stores would just throw the ice cream out if you insisted on paying with a payment method they don't accept.
    - Turing_Machine 6y ago
      > I expect most stores would just throw the ice cream out if you insisted on paying with a payment method they don't accept. Yes. And? If enough people do this, perhaps they'll change their policy.
      - 120391583 6y ago
        If you can order the ice cream and take possession of it before paying, you've incurred a debt. At that point, the store must be willing to accept cash (or forgive the debt altogether). End result: you've got ice cream. If you order the ice cream but don't take possession of it until you pay, the store is free to reject your cash payment and not give you the ice cream. End result: no ice cream. If this occurs frequently enough, the waste from the store having to prepare and throw out ice cream might prompt them to change their policy, but that's not an immediate solution.