Europeans, do you no longer have to sign paper receipts upon purchase with credit cards?

[Taki]

So I was in Germany, Austria & Poland. I noticed that when people use their debit & credit cards to make purchases in stores and restaurants, their purchases do not generate receipts and customers don't provide signatures on those receipts.

In the USA, we've recently (as of the year 2015) switched from magnetic strips on our cards (the type you have to swipe ) to Chip. However, our Chip card purchases still generate receipts on the payment machines for some weird reason. Therefore, we're still using Chip-And-Signature as opposed to Chip-And-Pin.

It looks like this:

Is Chip-And-Pin the norm all over Europe now, or better yet, have some of you moved onto contact-less? And why hasn't the USA adopted it yet?

 

[BocoDragon]

Everywhere except the US has abandoned signatures. We haven’t had them in a Canada for nearly a decade now.

Having to sign for my card on a tablet when I go to the US is such a weird anachronism to me, because card signatures and tablets didn’t exist in the same era here lol.

Why hasn’t the USA adopted it? Banks not willing to foot the bill? America is a large place and they have to swallow the cost all at once? The answer at the end of the day is saving money.

 

[Cocolina]

chip and pin is the norm, contactless is the norm for transactions under a certain amount

 

[AxeVince]

I am 30 and never have I seen anyone sign the receipt except in North America since I've been able to remember.

 

[andymcc]

damn Taki, do you make a lot of European question threads lmao

Even in America, CC companies no longer require signatures. But, considering how long it takes changes to happen, many stores don't really update their POS systems so it's a case-by-case basis for the stores.

 

[NarohDethan]

Everywhere except the US has abandoned signatures. We haven’t had them in a Canada for nearly a decade now.

Click to shrink...

We still have them in Mexico, it sucks when the clerk cant find a pen lol

 

[DrFunk]

https://twocents.lifehacker.com/you-dont-have-to-sign-your-credit-card-receipts-anymore-1824208980

 

[wideface]

Taki’s Questions to Europeans |OT|

Alternatively...
Taki's Facts About Europe |OT|

 

[Smurf]

Everywhere except the US has abandoned signatures. We haven’t had them in a Canada for nearly a decade now.

Having to sign for my card on a tablet when I go to the US is such a weird anachronism to me, because card signatures and tablets didn’t exist in the same era here lol.

Why hasn’t the USA adopted it? Banks not willing to foot the bill? America is a large place and they have to swallow the cost all at once? The answer at the end of the day is saving money.

Click to shrink...

pretty much

 

[Septy]

Where were you in Germany/Austria

 

[Serebii]

I haven't had to do that since like 2003

 

[gcubed]

Taki, you need to get out more, at least you took a trip but "anymore" is a long ass time

signature is a garbage method and no one in their right mind uses it. Its worth nothing and has not real conseuqences so i have no idea why they would ever keep it around in the US. You know how i sign my receipts? I don't either, because its always different depending on what i'm signing it on. From a line, to a squiggle, to maybe one with a letter in it somewhere. What is gleaned from that? Nothing

 

[Zvonimir Boban]

Haven't had had to do that in the UK as we've been on chip and pin for like 10-15 years.

We've been able to pay for purchases under £20-30 using a contactless card for the last few years as well.

 

[Taki]

Where were you in Germany/Austria

Click to shrink...

Berlin, Vienna, Salzburg & Graz. Sup?

 

[Zoe]

Everywhere except the US has abandoned signatures. We haven’t had them in a Canada for nearly a decade now.

Click to shrink...

I had to sign in Japan. The cashier even made me sign my card (I don't usually bother).

 

[kadotsu]

The older terminals that don't use NFC usually have a stylus touchscreen to sign. You can also force a signature by not using NFC.

 

[Maquiladora]

Anything under 30 euro, I think, is almost always paid with just a tap of the card. Receipts are offered to the customer for any amounts as proof of payment, but I've never had to sign one in Europe.

 

[Kongroo]

Lol people need to sign for credit card purchases in the U.S. Haven't done that in years here in Canada.

 

[hombremalo]

Nothing under 20 Euros, PIN for more.

 

[Waaghals]

Can't recall ever having had to do that. (That's not to say that it has never been the case).
For the last 8-10 years it has been all chip and pin here.

The only time I have ever encountered signing is as a backup solution when the terminal cannot connect to the backend. It might also have happened on some non-visa/MC foreign cards.

 

[danowat]

Up to £30, you don't even have to use a PIN.

I can't remember the last time I had to sign for a credit card purchase (in Europe)

 

[andymcc]

I had to sign in Japan. The cashier even made me sign my card (I don't usually bother).

Click to shrink...

Japan is very old school about CC in general. It's remarkable when non-chain businesses (even restaurants) accept them. What's even stranger is when they accept your rail pass or smartphone contactless stuff... but not real credit cards.

 

[Rei no Otaku]

I'm in the US and the only places that still make me sign for credit are a couple local restaurants. Everywhere else has switched to using the chip.

 

[Tyaren]

I've heard Americans also clap after signing their paper receipt, we also don't do that In Europe. ;)

 

[Tugatrix]

No, and as I far as I recall since I remember I never saw no one signing a recipe. Also if is not a warranted article you don't need to keep the paper those are online in the Tax authority if you gave tax number(Portugal)

 

[Zoe]

Lol people need to sign for credit card purchases in the U.S. Haven't done that in years here in Canada.

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Most places have gotten rid of it in the US or only require it for large purchases.

Restaurant checks are different because of the tip. We don't have mobile machines with the waiter hovering over you as you pay.

 

[Bleu]

It is not that we no longer have to sign anything, we never had to.
Chip and pin is there since the early 90s (at least in my country)
Signature for card payments (and magnetics stripes) is the american way (aka the stupid way).

 

[Golden]

It has been many years since i have had to sign for anything

 

[BocoDragon]

Most places have gotten rid of it in the US or only require it for large purchases.

Restaurant checks are different because of the tip. We don't have mobile machines with the waiter hovering over you as you pay.

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We have tips here in Canada too. Pretty much every machine asks for a tip. Gotta love the built in % options.

Haven’t written a tip on a piece of paper since the 2000s.

 

[BDS]

Uh, I live in the US and the only places that ever ask for a signature on a receipt for a credit card transaction are certain smaller restaurants. This is definitely not a widespread thing.

 

[Bleu]

DP

 

[newline]

Yo I pay for everything using my phone nowadays. Chip n pin if I'm spending more than 30 quid too.

 

[Deleted member 2625]

Taki are you really going to go through every single little difference between Europe and America and make a thread for each?

 

[Izzard]

Not done that in years. Chip n pin or contactless payments are what we have in the uk. I get a lot of tourists in my store who have to sign still. Mostly from the US or China.

 

[Kongroo]

Most places have gotten rid of it in the US or only require it for large purchases.

Restaurant checks are different because of the tip. We don't have mobile machines with the waiter hovering over you as you pay.

Click to shrink...

Huh. So how do you pay at a restaurant? They make you go to a machine at the front, I'm guessing?

I love the mobile machines. I can always just input the tip % on the machine then tap my card. Takes 30 seconds.

 

[Sputnik Sweetheart]

My dad had to provide chip and signature once here in the UK in Ikea. I can't remember the context of why but it's the only time I've ever seen it used.

 

[BocoDragon]

Huh. So how do you pay at a restaurant? They make you go to a machine at the front, I'm guessing?

I love the mobile machines. I can always just input the tip % on the machine then tap my card. Takes 30 seconds.

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I seem to remember in olden days here they took your card away and returned with a piece of paper you can write the tip on as you signed.

That was really sketchy... taking your card away. But that’s how it was done.

 

[BuckRogers]

This is becoming increasingly uncommon in stores in the US as well. Almost none of my regular stores (grocery store, Costco, hardware store, ...) require a signature anymore.

We have tips here in Canada too. Pretty much every machine asks for a tip. Gotta love the built in % options.

Haven’t written a tip on a piece of paper since the 2000s.

Click to shrink...

A lot of chain restaurants are like this in the US, but smaller or nicer restaurants still use paper. Not sure why higher end restaurants won't use machines.

 

[Zoe]

We have tips here in Canada too. Pretty much every machine asks for a tip. Gotta love the built in % options.

Haven’t written a tip on a piece of paper since the 2000s.

Click to shrink...

I know you have tips... with a mobile machine and the waiter hovering over you.

Huh. So how do you pay at a restaurant? They make you go to a machine at the front, I'm guessing?

I love the mobile machines. I can always just input the tip % on the machine then tap my card. Takes 30 seconds.

Click to shrink...

They give you the bill, you give them your card when you're ready, they bring back your card and the new receipt.

I prefer the asynchronicity of paper receipts. No pressure to leave the table and no hovering involved.

 

[Dr. Zoidberg]

Even in the US, some places don't make you sign anymore. It varies from business to business in my experience. It's slowly but surely going away. Nobody ever looks at the signed slips anyway, it's mainly just "evidence" if there is a challenge to the charge or something. Otherwise it's kept and then thrown away.

 

[Gawge]

I’m in the UK and have been using debit/credit cards for ~10 years now, have never had to sign.

Chip and pin feels outdated to me now, I use contactless for 90% of purchases.

 

[Mars People]

America doesn't use contactless under a certain amount?
We've had that so long in the UK I struggle to remember my PIN number sometimes.

 

[plié]

Haha, no. What is this 1990?

America doesn't use contactless under a certain amount?
We've had that so long in the UK I struggle to remember my PIN number sometimes.

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Reading these threads really makes america seem like some 3rd world country lol

 

[Dache]

I've never signed a paper receipt when using my debit card in the UK for about 20 years.

 

[BocoDragon]

I know you have tips... with a mobile machine and the waiter hovering over you.

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It’s not like they look at what you type into the machine as a tip any more than they can see your pin. The receipt prints out as they thank you and you leave. I’ve never felt there was an opportunity to tip-judge until you were out the door.

 

[raygcon]

Go to China. They don’t even use card anymore.

 

[Deleted member 16516]

UK here and I haven't sign a receipt in years.

 

[apocat]

Taki are you really going to go through every single little difference between Europe and America and make a thread for each?

Click to shrink...

Don't discourage him! I'm finding it weirdly fascinating!

 

[Damaniel]

In the US, many larger stores don't require signing receipts for smaller amounts, and at Costco I have to spend a few hundred dollars before they want one. However, stores take forever to catch up with the times so many stores still require signatures, even for small purchases. Seems like nothing but a waste of time and paper to me. (Of course, we're still the country that decided having a coin with 1/100th of a dollar of spending power, in 2019, is a good idea.)

 

[mael]

The US just recently switched to pin and chip, why recently and not some odd 20 years ago when the tech was new and not now when it's cracked to hell and back?
Banks didn't want to pay for the license to use the patent which just expired.
Never trust a US bank when they tell you they care about your safety or the safety of your account.