Chapters is the largest bookstore chain in Canada and the company has quietly implemented a new policy. If anyone is trying to redeem points via their loyalty cards to get discounts on books, magazines or newspapers they now have to show government ID.

Apparently Chapters has been seeing an influx of unscrupulous people who use stolen loyalty cards in order to receive free books. This has promoted a mandate for most Chapters bookstores in major urban centers to now prompt customers to see their drivers license, passport, provincial ID or Nexus cards for verification.

The Chapters loyalty card has a ceiling limit of $100 and once you attain that level of free points, you cannot earn anymore. This is primarily done for security, but it looks like the bookstore is going one step further and making people have to prove who they say they are.

I don’t know If i like this new policy. I visit various Chapters bookstores in Vancouver every week to buy stuff. Whenever I make purchases I am always getting gilt tripped into donating to their underprivileged reading campaigns. So basically I can donate money, I can pay money, but if I want to redeem $5.00 to get a small discount its now this big thing to prove to them who I say I am. What is next? Retina scans to buy books? Maybe I should just buy exclusively from Amazon.



