[longhungjohn33]

I came across a PDF document online regarding Vias's Rules for Merchants. It states, and I'm quoting this document:

"When should you ask a cardholder for an official governement ID? Although Visa rules do not preclude merchants from asking from asking for cardholder ID, merchants cannot make an ID a condition of acceptance. Therefore, merchants cannot refuse to complete a purchase transaction because a cardholder refuses to provide ID. Visa believes merchants should not ask for ID as part of their regular card acceptance procedures.Laws in several states also make it illegal for merchants to write a cardholder's personal information, such as an address or phone number, on a sales receipt.

I live in Michigan and I was wondering if anybody know's Michigan's laws governing this sort of situation.

I also read that if a merchant accepts a signature for a purchase and the signature's do not match what is on the back of the credit card, they can be held liable for the costs/chargebacks and the customer will not incur any charges for the purchase. I find this hard to believe because people could just sign anything(gibberish) and dispute the charge at the end of the month; unless they go back and look at surveillance tapes to see if it's actually the cardholder signing for the purchase. Is this really true? Because if it is, it's pretty rediculous if you ask me. What is the procedure by most merchants and credit card companies in this kind of situation?

[Mr. Knowitall]

I am not aware of any Michigan law which would prevent a merchant from requesting additional ID. Check for yourself here.

Unless their contract with the credit card provider holds otherwise, as can be the case particularly with mail order, phone order, and express line purchases, a merchant is responsible to compare the signature on the card with the signature on the sales receipt. If the merchant chooses not to do so, the merchant faces the potential consequence that the credit card company will decline payment.