BuzzCard dumps Papa John’s

The branch of Papa John’s Pizza closest to Tech, which had previously accepted BuzzCard payments for its pizza, drinks and other food, no longer allows students to pay with the card.

Located at the intersection of 10th and State streets, the restaurant had given students looking to spend the funds on their BuzzCards another meal option. The end of the service may limit students’ choices for on and near-campus dining. Contacted for comment, the location confirmed they stopped accepting the card at the beginning of May. They did not comment on the reason for the change.

The BuzzCard Center clarified the reasons for the termination of the service. “A decision was made by Auxiliary Services, in the best interest of all BuzzCard account participants, to not renew the Papa John’s Acceptance Agreement,” said James Pete, director of the BuzzCard Center, in an email.

“This decision was based upon a lack of commitment on [their] behalf to adhere to the terms and conditions of their Acceptance Agreement,” he continued. He said the decision came as a result of continued failures to follow the agreement on the part of Papa John’s. “Papa John’s did not submit reimbursement requests timely on a biweekly basis as agreed upon. When the reimbursement requests were received, there were errors, missing receipt copies and, on occasion, duplicate charges,” said Melissa Moore, communications officer for Auxiliary Services.

The termination of the contract means Papa John’s is not likely to start accepting the card again any time soon. “There are no plans for Papa John’s to be a participating merchant in the future,” Pete said. Students who wish to pay for pizza with their BuzzCards will have to settle for the Pizza Hut Express location in the Student Center, or Pandini’s, where California-style pizza is one of the options on the menu.

Some expressed disappointment at the discontinuation of the payment option. “Food outlets on campus should be as open to the students as possible,” said Computer Science major Yi Wu. “Getting rid of the BuzzCard services is a step backwards.” In addition to the on-campus restaurants that accept BuzzCard, such as Pandini’s and Junior’s Grill, several Tech Square restaurants have started accepting the card in the past six months. Students can use the card to pay for their meals at 5th St. Ribs-N-Blues and St. Charles Deli.

The card will also be accepted at both of the restaurants opening in the fall in the Student Center Commons, as well as at H2O Cafe in the Campus Recreation Center.

For now though, students need not worry about more restaurants ending their acceptance of BuzzCards. “There are no [other] known participating restaurants that will stop accepting the BuzzCard,” Pete said.