Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, July 23, 1995 TAG: 9507250045
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: F-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: CHARLOTTE, N.C. LENGTH: Medium
Food Lion, the Salisbury-based grocery chain, is installing a new bad-checks detection system that will eliminate the need for repeat customers to present a driver's license.
The ``No I.D. Tender'' system already operates in 82 stores. By the end of the year, all 1,045 Food Lion stores will have the system, which was tested about a year ago in a handful of stores.
The computer takes just one second to approve a check. Industry studies show that such systems can shave 10 to 15 seconds off of each checkout transaction, said Clayton Edwards, Food Lion director of loss prevention.
Under the system, which Food Lion developed itself, customers have to produce ID only on their first visit to a Food Lion store. The cashier enters the driver's license number into the register - which routes it to central computers in Salisbury.
The processor looks like a credit card scanner slide. The scanner reads the bank account numbers on the bottom of checks, called the magnetic ink character recognition number, or MICR. The scanner indicates to the cashier if a driver's license number for that bank account already exists in Food Lion's computers. If it doesn't, the scanner prompts the cashier to ask for ID.
``The system makes it faster, easier and more convenient for customers, and it cuts down on fraudulent checks,'' said company spokeswoman Chris Ahearn.
A growing number of retailers are designing similar systems. Wal-Mart and Target have no-ID systems in some of their stores.
The scanner rejects the check if the account was closed or if the writer has recently bounced a check. In special circumstances, a manager can override the system.
The scanner can detect if the MICR number has been altered or if the check is a fake, Ahearn said. It also will cross-reference information between branch stores instantly - so people can't pass multiple bad checks. It can detect suspicious trends such as when a person writes an unusually high number of checks for cash over a short period.
There's one catch for occasional shoppers. The system will purge your records if you don't shop at Food Lion at least once every 45 days.
The new system allows Food Lion to reward good customers with convenience, Ahearn said.
by CNB