A few observations:
For most people, leaving their card in a machine, or just plain losing it is
no big deal. They just go to the slot club and get another one. However, if
your account has a large point/comp balance, or a large cash back balance,
things can be different. By "large," I mean more than three or four hundred
dollars.
If some dishonest person finds your card, all he has to do is insert it into
a machine to see your points, whether they are for comps or cash. If the
amount is large enough, it might be worth it for this dishonest person to get a
fake ID, in order to be able to use your points, or cash in your cash back.
Fake IDs can be made by anyone with access to a digital camera, a computer, a
color printer, and a laminating machine. Or they can be bought for less than
$200. The fake ID would, of course, have your name and his picture on it.
In addition to this possibility, as has been pointed out, point redemption
often results in being "tripped," with zero play. This can cause future offers
to suffer, and potentially cost the bigger players hundreds or even thousands
of dollars.
I've heard enough stories about people having their accounts accessed
without their presence or permission, after losing their slot card, to take this
possibility seriously. Not to mention amateur thieves who are allowed to use the
found/stolen card WITHOUT showing ID. The casino can crack down on the
amateurs, but can't do much about the ones who show a decent quality fake ID.
At a few places (FH comes to mind), when you redeem points at the slot club,
they ask for your date of birth. This is an excellent procedure, as a thief
would almost certainly not have this information. I also really like the
higher level cards, like at the Palms, which have your photo right on the card.
An added advantage to this is you don't have to dig out your driver's license
every time you want to redeem points.
I suggest, if you have a large balance on a card, to be VERY careful about
leaving it behind in a machine. This type of "identity theft" can certainly be
avoided!
Brian
···
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In a message dated 12/14/2007 10:20:50 PM Pacific Standard Time,
worksforthemoney@yahoo.com writes:
Good going Bob. This will benefit all of us:)
Bob Dancer <bdancer@compdance.com> wrote:
After a somewhat-different suggestion by Harry, I asked Jeffrey
Compton if he was interested in speaking to Harrah's about comp stealing
incidents --- perhaps leading to a column.
Jeffrey has been in touch with Harrah's. Without explaining who
Jeffrey's contact is, it turns out that they would like examples of how
people have had their Total Reward comps stolen. So if you have a story
about this that you'd like to get passed along, please contact Jeffrey
at jeffrey.compton@compdance.com, me, or post it on vpFREE. If you wish
your story to be posted anonymously, tell Jeffrey that and he will honor
your request. If you wish Harrah's to know your name and card number so
that you can possibly be reimbursed, do NOT post that on vpFREE but
rather contact Jeffrey directly.
If there are any conclusions from this communication between
Jeffrey and Harrah's, Jeffrey will likely publish them somewhere
(perhaps Strictly Slots or Casino Player). I'll try to get him to allow
me to post the article here after it has been published.
Bob Dancer
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