RE: Ameri-centric web forms: credit card forms, etc

Since I live in the State of Israel, I always select IL as the state in
these cases and it seems to satisfy them. By chance, my previous Israeli
postal code (61336)  was a valid zip code for IL.

However, some of these forms insist on a 10 digit phone number.

Jony

> -----Original Message-----
> From: www-international-request@w3.org 
> [mailto:www-international-request@w3.org] On Behalf Of Chris 
> Skurkey (by way of Martin Duerst <duerst@w3.org>)
> Sent: Monday, September 20, 2004 2:15 AM
> To: www-international@w3.org
> Subject: Ameri-centric web forms: credit card forms, etc
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Dear all,
> 
> Living in the USA for most of my 38 years did not prepare me 
> for living in a foreign country such as Ireland. Although 
> some of my financial institutions are based in the States, 
> some of my financials have been set up in Ireland.
> 
> However, most-US based credit-card submission web forms only 
> allow for submission of certain criteria: States.
> 
> Doing business on the web should allow for foreign customers. 
> US-based "States" should NOT be a mandatory field in such web 
> forms when it is clear a customer who lives in a foreign country.
> 
> As an example, may I point out www.efax.com.  On its 
> upgrade-to-sign-up page, the user is allowed to select a 
> local number in Dublin, Ireland; and the foreign user is even 
> allowed to select the foreign country he is in - in my case, 
> the Republic of  Ireland. I also input all of the correct 
> credit-card data. However, the field "state", while required, 
> is limited to all territories and states on the North 
> American continent - but not that of Ireland or Mexico, for 
> that matter.
> 
> Even if were to select "Alabama", it is not valid, for there 
> is no Alabama in Ireland. There are no ZIP Codes in Ireland, either.
> 
> There must be a standard to the design of web-based credit 
> card submission forms so that those forms no longer have the 
> limiting "drop-down" lists of
> *only* US states.
> 
> Intelligent mapping sites such as www.viamichelin.com now 
> distinguish between "Limerick, Ireland" and "Limerick, Maine, 
> US". It is therefore possible to discern correct mailing 
> address *without* reliance upon mere US-based  information.
> 
> This will allow for true international trade without fraud. 
> Only one's credit-card company need know for sure - which is 
> why the "Verified-by-VISA" codes can be so important. There 
> are other safeguards that can be incorporated into web-based 
> forms that no longer need rely on ZIP Codes as a control.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Chris Skurkey
> Chris Skurkey
> Dingle
> Co. Kerry
> Ireland
> 
> 
> 
>

Received on Monday, 20 September 2004 04:21:08 UTC