Wednesday, October 10, 2012

New APP Helps Blind People Count Money


A new, government-funded cellphone app will help the blind and those with visual impairments count their cash.
Those with Android devices can scan a bill with their phone's camera and the app will read the bill's denomination aloud.
The Education Department and the U.S. Treasury teamed up to launch the free app. U.S. Treasurer Rosie Rios says the "IDEAL Currency Identifier" is intended to give the blind more independence.
There's already a similar free app called EyeNote for Apple devices such as iPhones and iPads. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing says that app has been downloaded more than 8,000 times since its launch last year.  For all your money counting needs visit count-money.com

Saturday, October 6, 2012

How to Manage a CASH Drawer


Retailers will benefit greatly by creating a procedure to account for the store's cash. These internal controls are necessary to prevent mishandling of money and to safeguard assets against loss. Not only do strong internal controls promote operational efficiency, they also ensure reliable accounting records.
The process of counting the money, reconciling the receipts and balancing the cash drawer creates an accountability of the day's transactions. This cash management system can be created at the same time store policies are established. 
We supply a  selection of  money counters and  Coin Counters to use when balancing and counting your cash drawers. These machines are faster, easier and more accurate than hand counting.

Why Balance?

Store management or cashiers can pull a sales report at any time during a shift. By adding the beginning cash in drawer to the daily sales figure, a retailer will know exactly how much money should be in the cash register at any given time. This is extremely useful:
  • To avoid holding too much cash on the sales floor.
  • If the store is robbed.
  • When a customer complains about too little change.
  • For discovering frequent overages/shortages for particular cashiers.
  • To remove temptation of taking cash without documentation from the cash drawer.

How to Balance a Cash Drawer

Balancing a cash register usually takes place at the end of the day or at the end of a cashier's shift. The cash drawer and its contents should be taken to an office or other secluded area to prepare the report. If balancing the drawer after closing, be sure the sales floor lights are off and the door is locked.
Any overages and or shortages should be investigated. Human nature should be taken into account for minor errors and small amounts. However, frequent discrepancies could be sign of employee theft or may indicate further training is required for a particular cashier.
The starting cash on-hand is put back into the cash drawer and stored for the evening, while the deposit is prepared for the bank. All credit card slips, terminal reports and other register receipts can be stapled to the Daily Cash Drawer Report and filed by date.

Separation of Duties

For more accountability, consider using two people to balance the cash register. One person will count the drawer and create the daily cash report, while the other person prepares a bank deposit. Both staff members should sign the report indicating they are responsible for the figures shown. While no system can prevent fraud, this audit trail will help discourage collusion among employees.
At the beginning of the next shift, each casher should be assigned their own cash drawer. Have the cashier recount the cash in the drawer to verify the beginning balance. If accepting checks from customers, create a system to restrictively endorse all checks promptly as received. The internal control cycle of balancing a cash register starts all over.

Counting Machines

We sell a nice selection of money counters and Coin Counters to use when balancing and counting your cash drawers. These machines are faster, easier and more accurate than hand counting.

Woman Claims Walmart Workers Tore Up Her $100 Bills

A Texas woman is suing Walmart for false imprisonment and emotional distress, claiming the store detained her for two hours over counterfeit money that wasn’t counterfeit. Store employees tore up two $100 bills, Julia Garcia contends, then tried to return them to her when a police officer finally confirmed that they were genuine. Garcia was on a Christmas shopping trip for her children in 2010 when a cashier took her $100 bill, decided it was fake and tore it in half before bothering to check it with a counterfeit detection pen, according to the lawsuit. Even then, after the test showed the bill was real and its metal strip could clearly be seen, a manager came over and destroyed a second $100 bill that Garcia offered. The manager then made Garcia wait for two hours at the front of the store for police to arrive, in full view of other customers, the suit contends. When an officer finally showed up, he quickly confirmed that the bills were real and made the manager replace her money — but not before the Walmart employee tried to return the already-torn bills instead. Now, the store has a lawsuit on its hands. “The legal remedies for false imprisonment are the recovery of actual damages such as physical injuries, medical costs, value of lost, misappropriated or damaged property, if any,” says Christopher L. Davis, a consumer litigation and personal injury attorney near Dallas. “A successful plaintiff in a false imprisonment case can also recover damages for humiliation, shame, fright, mental anguish, as well as exemplary damages, if it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant acted with malice.” The plaintiff is seeking less than $74,900.

To see a full line of counterfeit detection devices please visit our website