Vons provides some additional amenities such as Starbucks cafes at its supermarkets, but it might not be as well known that its stores provide financial services as well. Its stores have customer service desks where you can buy money orders, cash checks, and use other services that are typically available at bank branches. These customer service desks are typically located at the front of the supermarket. Here are the financial services that are available at Vons.
Does Vons Cash Checks?
Vons cashes payroll checks and government checks at its store service counters. Like many other supermarkets, it doesn’t cash personal checks, which are riskier for a store to accept. You should expect to pay a fee of a few dollars to cash a check at Vons. The service counters do have cash available so it is possible to cash a check there and receive the payout in cash as well. You can also cash checks at other supermarkets such as Ralphs and Stater Bros as well as convenience stores. Convenience stores like 7-Eleven and Circle K typically don’t carry lots of cash so when they cash your checks they often load the balance onto a prepaid debit card instead.
Does Vons Sell Money Orders?
Vons sells money orders but does not cash them, which is normal for supermarkets. It has partnerships with both MoneyGram and Western Union so you can buy a money order from either of these services at its customer service desks. Again, expect to pay a small fee to buy a money order there. Other supermarkets frequently sell money orders as well but may only have a partnership with one money transfer company. Ralphs and Vallarta also have partnerships with multiple financial service providers, though.
Can You Send or Receive Money at Vons?
You can also send money transfers and receive money transfers at Vons. Again, this is possible because of the store’s partnerships with financial services companies and these services are available at its in-store customer service desks. Western Union allows you to send remittances to recipients in foreign countries as well so you can also visit a Vons store to send money to family members who live abroad. This service is also available at other traditional supermarkets.
Can You Reload Prepaid Cards at Vons?
You can also reload prepaid cards such as Green Dot, Cash App, or Chime cards at Vons stores. Again, this service is available at the customer service desk in the front section of the store. You can reload Vons’ branded prepaid cards for free but you should expect to pay a fee to reload third-party prepaid cards. You can reload prepaid cards at other major supermarkets as well and they have similar rules.
Can You Pay Your Utility Bills at Vons?
You can also pay utility bills, rent, and other bills at Vons’ service desks. Again, it has a partnership with Western Union and this financial intermediary provides bill payment services in addition to the other financial services it offers. It would be a good idea to bring a bill stub or a copy of the bill along with you to the service desk when you pay the bill.
What Are Vons Alternatives That Provide Financial Services?
Ralphs is another major supermarket chain that has in-store customer service desks. If you bring your store loyalty card along you can get a discount on its financial service fees.
Stater Bros also provides several financial services at its supermarkets. It doesn’t have as many locations in my area as Vons does but it does have lots of stores in other regions of Southern California.
Vallarta is another supermarket chain that has customer-service booths where you can buy money orders, send remittances, and pay your utility bills. It also has partnerships with Western Union and MoneyGram.
Conclusion
Vons provides all of the most important financial services and it can serve as an alternative to a bank branch for shoppers who don’t have accounts with local banks. Like other traditional supermarkets, it’s also likely that Vons has higher transaction limits than drugstores that also offer these services. It’s also important to know that the store’s customer-service desk may close for the night before the supermarket itself closes, although that’s also true for other supermarkets that provide financial services.