Textbook credits baffle students

Kennel Bookstore warns students not to spend money credited to them

By Katrina Garcia
The Collegian

Students who purchased their books at the Kennel Bookstore with a credit or debit card within the past month might have thought they hit the jackpot.

Since Aug. 14, a computer glitch in the Kennel Bookstore’s new software placed credits into the students’ accounts after charging the account the amount they spent. In many cases, students were double-credited.

For example, if a student purchased $500 in textbooks, a charge would show up on his or her account. Then, a credit of $500 would go into the account, followed by an additional $500 credit in many cases.

Ron Durham, director of the Kennel Bookstore, said students have been coming to the bookstore since last Monday, the first batch primarily being ones who used debit cards to make their purchases.

However, as of Friday, Durham said a lot of students did not know about the transaction error.

Kennel Bookstore invested in new software last month and was meant to cut the time students had to wait in line. When the bookstore set up the software, data was rerouted to the wrong place. Instead of students getting charged by Kennel Bookstore, they were charged by CSUF.

The credit card company in charge of all of Kennel Bookstore’s transactions created a hotline just for students who have questions about the situation. Durham said the company doesn’t know when it will take down the hotline.

“If this would’ve happened in July, the problem would have been much more minimal,” Durham said, since the error occurred two weeks before the first day of school, the peak time of when students buy textbooks.

“The double credits just added salt to the wound,” Durham added.

Durham said a number of students brought it to the bookstore staff’s attention when they noticed the credits on their accounts.

“We do have a lot of honest students,” Durham said. “Students sound calm. They’re frustrated, but understanding.”

He added students should be aware of the money added to their accounts.

“Students need to understand they should not spend that money,” Durham said.

As of Tuesday, Durham said all Visa and MasterCard transactions should be fixed. American Express cardholders will have to wait two extra days.

Some students, however, said they would prefer to keep the improperly refunded money.

“I think they should just pay for everything,” Felicia Lukezic said of the credit card company’s error.

Lukezic, a freshman business major, said the students should not have to pay for accidentally spending the extra money dumped into their accounts.

“I don’t always keep track,” Lukezic said of her checking account. “Give or take $500? There’s no way I would’ve known.”

Ross Wood agreed. He said credits added to students’ accounts should not be taken away.

“It’s in my possession now,” Wood said, a freshman kinesiology major. “They gave it to me.”

“They shouldn’t give the money back,” Lukezic said of the students’ right to keep the money. She also said the company should be the one to pay for any students’ overdraft fees and money that was spent.

“When you make a mistake you have to pay for it,” Lukezic said.

Sonia Villarreal, a senior women’s studies major, was frustrated by the multiple transactions she saw while checking her account online. When she called her bank for an explanation of her statement, she was told to go to the bookstore for answers.

“I always do my online banking,” Villarreal said. “I keep track of everything. I need to know exactly what I have.”

Lukezic believed the credits were deserved, as textbooks can be expensive.

“It’s a way of giving back,” Lukezic said.

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