Mag Cards Not Working Consistently for POS Access

[JackieR]

Good afternoon! I am fairly new to Toast, but very seasoned in POS support for other brands, and I support a small group of restaurants that switched to Toast late last year. We recently made a decision to require all managers to use mag cards for POS access, and have disabled the POS access codes. They are using gift cards for swiping in and approval, which should not be an issue, but all six locations are reporting problems with their mag cards not working. They're re-registering the cards when they fail, and in some cases just reverting back to POS access codes to get them by for a day or two. One location opened a case with Toast support, but didn't get anywhere with it, so I recommended that they  order a case of cards directly from Toast (or at least the company that Toast uses for all mag card needs) - they should have them in the next day or two. I don't think there should be anything wrong with the gift cards that they have been using, so just reaching out here to see if anyone else in the community has come across this? I have not directly supported the managers on this case (our company has an internal IT department that I am a senior member of), because I figured I would be in the way if I tried to help troubleshoot, so I don't have a play by play on actions. Any insight is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

[au79teahouse]

Out of curiosity, could you share more detail on how card does not work consistently? 

[JackieR]

I don't really have any other details to share other than what I posted above - is there anything specific you are wondering?

[rcmck]

Have they tried just cleaning the swipe readers? With everything pretty much being chip or tap now mine get very little actual use, they could just be dirty. Obviously they are working somewhat though since you need a working reader to register them. Has anyone actually been on site yet to see? I know I  have employees exaggerate things, telling me something is not working restaurant wide and you get there to find it's really just one terminal intermittently. If it's all locations and all cards though, maybe something else is going on. 

[JackieR]

Unfortunately I know these managers would not be complaining this loudly if if weren't a real issue, and the hardware at all 6 locations is just 6 months old. Toast support was not helpful, and I work remotely and am not a part of daily operations. I posted here hoping that we are not alone, but I honestly don't need basic hardware  troubleshooting tips - I've been doing POS installation, repairs, programming, networking, and support for a couple of decades for a very large number of restaurants. There's no reason that I know of why a mag stripe should be unrecognized at multiple locations randomly for POS Access on every device, but they are able to turn around and activate the same card again, then run into it again later. Could be user error or a lack of intuition, I really don't know, but if I don't learn anything here, I will just have to keep digging and reopen the case with Toast support if it continues to happen. Thank you for your time.