PURPOSE: To prevent trouble from being given to users by detecting the defect of paying merchandise out, judging sales possibility within the range of a price adding the remainder read from an updated card and the sales price of a column generating the pay-out defect, and resetting a sales state.

CONSTITUTION: When the pay-out defect is detected, a sales control part 2 turns the column generating the pay-out defect to a sold-out state, stops selling merchandise and judges the sales possibility again within the range of the price adding the sales price of the column detected the pay-out defect to the card remainder read from a card reader/writer 7. When it is detected the selection push button switch of the column enabling sale is operated, sale enable outputs applied to respective columns are reset. In this case, the return of the prepaid card is instructed to the writer 7, and the merchandise pay-out of the column detected the operation is instructed to a merchandise conveyer 5. Thus, the possibility of exhausting change can be reduced.