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Bluestone, which now has 20 stores in the U.S., went cashless last October.
A big reason: Nearly 90 percent of customers [...] never paid in cash.
Another reason: The lines move faster when employees don't have to make change.
"We see a lot of guests that pay for a meal with a credit card, but will always leave a cash tip. And I think people like doing that. People like palming a bartender a $20 or palming their server a $10. Palming the bus boy a couple bucks," said Fileccia.
There are also people, he said, who want to keep their meal off the books — if they're having an affair, for example.
No, businesses are not required to accept cash: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_tender
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When The Cash Register Doesn't Take Cash
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(Score: 3, Interesting) by pendorbound on Tuesday January 09 2018, @03:59PM (3 children)
There's a legal difference between "goods and services" and a "debt." No US business may refuse to accept US currency to pay a debt. (Well, they can, but that effectively discharges the debt, unpaid.) The currency says, "legal tender for all debts public and private." Any business MAY refuse to accept cash before they provide goods & services for you.
Where it gets grey with restaurants is where the difference between goods and serves versus a debt comes in. Fast food, pay when you place your order, before you get your food. That's goods & services. No question. If they don't want to take your cash, they refuse your order. No debt created, no McHolesterol with cheese for you.
A sit-down restaurant where you order, eat, then pay is different. They've served you food ahead of payment, creating a debt. You can pay that debt with legal tender. If they refuse, the debt is discharged. They may or may not be required to give you change if you don't have exact. Pretty sure that varies by state. If the bill is $42, you slap a $50 on the table and walk out, if they call the cops, the cops will tell them to pound sand. If you throw a fit and say you want your $8 change, chances are you're going home eight bucks lighter than you planned. Instead, throw an extra single down and at least make it a half-way decent tip.
(Score: 2) by AthanasiusKircher on Tuesday January 09 2018, @07:20PM
Yes, there's a reason it's a "gray area," because it's not as clear as you make it out to be either. Yes, you're correct that if someone refuses to pay after a debt is created, and they decided to sue you to recover the debt, they must accept any legal tender in court or whatever.
But things are a lot more shaky if there's a posted policy on payment options in advance. Even though sales are mostly handled informally, they are basically governed by contract law. A business that clearly informs customers of restrictions on payment in advance is basically stating the terms under which they are willing to render a service or sale. They could easily argue that acceptance of any service is a tacit agreement to said terms. (And on a much more solid legal footing than, say, an obscure clause in an EULA.)
I dare you to try to do what you claim: go to a restaurant that has a clearly stated and posted policy stating "We don't accept bills larger than $20" or whatever. Then try to offer a $50 or $100 and try to leave when they refuse. Claim that your "debt is discharged." They will call the police. And you will likely end up paying one way or another. (Unless there's a state law prohibiting said business policies.) Eventually you might end up in court. And eventually they might end up being forced to accept your $50 bill there. BUT I guarantee you you're not getting away with "Oh, too bad, my debt is now discharged and I owe you nothing."
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Tuesday January 09 2018, @09:17PM
I think that interpretation gets trumpeted a lot by people playing at being a lawyer (with the caveat that while I'm not a lawyer, I'm at least capable of critical thinking).
If a company sues you for damaging their one of a kind MacGuffin, they must accept US currency, cash, to settle that debt. They cannot somehow force you to procure a replacement MacGuffin for repayment, or payment via credit card (although the company and the courts may agree to charge extra for the processing and transport of a large amount of physical currency).
However, eating at a restaurant is a normal exchange between buyer and seller, even if you pay after. If the restaurant did not make their payment policies clear, you might end up settling or going to court, but you are NOT cleared of "debt" by default.
Now, if you eat and pay (or not pay), the restaurant is satisfied, and then they turn around and sue you for civil damages later and win the case somehow, they are obligated to accept US currency, cash, for the repayment. They cannot force you to repay using a credit card for example.
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(Score: 2) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Wednesday January 10 2018, @10:32PM
Legal citation, or stand down. And Juilliard v. Greenman does not count - that case was strictly about whether or not banknotes carried the same force as coin as Legal Tender. (i.e. you say you accept Cash but then refuse banknotes and accept coins... That's not legal.)
As to your examples.... You drop a $100 bill on the table of a restaurant for a $1 McDouble (yeah, I know Mickey D's don't work like this), restaurant refuses, you try to walk away. They may call the cops. Cops may or may not arrest you for theft. But I sue you, I'm gonna get my dollar.
By the way... you want authority for the above? Try the U.S. Treasury. https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/faqs/Currency/Pages/legal-tender.aspx [treasury.gov]
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