https://www.cashtechcurrency.com/smart-safesGas stations are undeniably one of the busiest and most frequented hubs facilitating transportation. As a result of this, a gas station’s staff handle very large amounts of cash. With so many customers coming in and out of the station and its convenience store, the staff have to be on top of their cash handling game or risk a high shrink rate. Especially since some stations are manned by only one or two employees during some shifts, security procedures should be top notch.
But no worries, we’ve got you covered. If you can be aware of these three common cash handling mistakes, you’ll not only be on top of the game, you’ll be ahead of it. Luckily, all three of these cash handling mistakes are completely preventable.
1. Too Much Cash On Hand
As was just mentioned, gas stations are businesses that handle a large amount of cash. This is caused by a number of reasons. A hectic work schedule can prevent staff from making vault deposits and traveling to the bank when the vault is full. Employees often hold too much cash in the register in case of large transactions or during extremely busy periods where many transactions are made at once. While most of the factors that cause staff to keep too much cash on hand are understandable and in some cases are related to the good intentions of a prudent employee, this mistake is a dangerous one to make.
Holding on to too much cash is not just inconvenient for the smooth operation of the store, it raises the chance of internal theft and robbery.
The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety recommends retailers and gas stations have a cash handling policy in effect. One of the methods they list to enforce this policy is to use a locked drop safe. There are currently smart safes on the market that are stand-alone or can be integrated into a business’ POS.
Smart safes allow businesses to streamline the process of storing and reconciling cash. They also increase accountability for staff, as they operate with log-ins with individual IDs. All bills are verified, counted, and fed into a safe for collection by the store owner or an armoured car provider.
2. Transaction Errors
Gas stations with a smaller staff are likely to make this mistake more often than not without a robust cash handling policy. It is related to the first mistake in that cashiers at gas stations deal with a high volume of cash and people. When things are really hopping at peak hours, employees might count money incorrectly, leading to shortchanging or giving too much change to customers. Both of these not only hurt the business’ reputation, but can cause cash shrinkage as well.
This mistake is another one that can easily be avoided by implementing an automated cash machine, specifically a cash recycler. Cash recyclers do the reconciling of cash for the employees, sorting and dispensing the correct amounts of cash for them. They are integrated into your POS, and count and verify the money coming in and quickly and accurately dispense the correct amount of change. Recyclers are a great way to streamline the process of tracking transactions, saving time for staff and customers.
3. Relying Only on Manual Verification for Counterfeit Bills
While it is not necessarily a mistake to have staff check for signs of counterfeiting by sight and touch, it is definitely a mistake to assume that manual checks are sufficient to catch all counterfeit bills. Counterfeit technology has advanced to the point where it is problematic to trust only manual detection for verification.
Gas stations should look into acquiring counterfeit detectors at POS. Together with a cash recycler or a smart safe and proper cash handling procedures, their security and ROI will be optimal.
