A question about : Strip club scam
Hi All. Im expecting the usual serve you right/accept it answers here but I hoping there'll be someone out there with some sympathy for my situation. After several drinks on Friday I found myself in a strip club in east London with some friends. I distinctly recall withdrawing money from the cash machine inside and my online statements back this up. Over the course of the next few hours on more than one occasion I tried paying for drinks on my card after running out of cash. The barman told me on a few occasions that the card had been rejected due to an incorrect pin so I tried another card. Unbeknown to me until my friend interjected the barman had put through the transactions - for a few beers - for stupidly high amounts Ј3000, Ј2500, Ј1830, Ј1250 etc. Some of these were declined by the credit card, the latter ones where my friend clocked what he was doing and told him to stop and he cancelled it at the machine rather than it going through and being rejected my credit card company. Why didn't I leave I hear you ask - I vaguely recall a bouncer going through my wallet and I also recall believing the barman's dodgy story that the machine was at fault and it wasn't him. All I know is that after spending whatever cash I had on me the most I would have knowingly spent on my card is Ј200ish. With a pocket full of cancelled receipts I thought i'd got away with it but it turns out two transactions did go through - Ј1800+ and Ј460 meaning that little end of night trip has cost me close to Ј2.5k. My card company (bank and credit card) have said the chip and pin was used so its unlikely they'll be able to do anything, even though one person I spoke to admitted that it seemed odd that I should have a series of rejected payments all 5 minutes after one another but for decreasing amounts.
I'm really at a loss as to what I can now do as I definitely can't afford to me Ј2k down and into my overdraft getting charged stupidly high overdraft interest rates. I admit I should have been more vigilant when handing over my card and the fact that I don't remember the exact circumstances makes it difficult for me to prove or disprove anything but equally, I know something dodgy was going on as we called the barman up on it.
Ive spoken to the police, trading standards and CAB and so far they've said wait for the outcome of the bank's decision but since ive pretty much been told they're not going to pay I need to work out what my next moves are. CAB said I should use the capacity to contract argument and state that if I was intoxicated I wouldn't knowingly put my card into a machine for several thousand worth of transactions in such a short period of time. However, I fear this route could take some time and it may not be a success. I also know that for some time I didn't have my coat with me which had my wallet in (stupid I know) so it is possible that having seen me enter the pin someone could have used my card without me knowing but im really clutching at straws there. All I know is that I definitely wouldn't spent that amount on purpose and that I had a go at the barman once I'd worked out what he was actually doing.
Any thoughts - positive preferably - appreciated!
Best answers:
- This thread sounds suspiciously like a few others which have appeared here in the past...
- that probably wasn't the clearest - I meant/I think it means that if you are intoxicated you probably wouldn't know the full consequences of entering into such a transaction i.e. emptying your bank account therefore you are not in a fit state to make that decision
- I dont understand the scam. I've paid for drinks in bars by card, they just give you the card reader to put your card in, it says what the amount is on the display and you put your pin in and press enter. You then get a receipt.
How can they take random amounts off your card? - unless they had my card and had previously seen my pin when the amounts kept getting rejected? it is very possible that I didn't have my wallet with me every minute I was in there as I know at one point it was in my coat which was not on my person. Probably wishful thinking there but its quite possible as in my drunken state I doubt i'd be very careful about not showing my hand when entering the pin
- Can i ask how drunk you were. Just re-reading your story it sounds like you hardly even know what was going on generally?
- It's times like this that i'm glad i don't drink.
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