Beware! Always check your receipts!

[Docno]

Happens where I live in 'squeaky clean' Singapore too ... usually a discounted item where discount was not yet registered in the system or where there's '2 for...' sale and the cashier scanned the two items at separate time. Not sure how the OP's case could be one of dishonesty since a scanner was being used. It's not as if the cash register has a "charge-the-farang-more" button that the cashier can press for an item.

[KittenKong]

I can just imagine posters on here paying for a trolley load of food then standing there on the spot for 10 minutes going through the receipt with a fine tooth comb.

In a supermarket I find it simpler just to watch the prices flash up on the screen as they get scanned. That way I can easily spot one that isnt right.

[BuriramRes]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

More like dishonesty, glad to see that some farangs are dishonest,the same as some non farangs.I odnt buy the excuse also, 2 wrongs dont make a right.Do u drive on the pavement with a scooter,and say, well thais do it,do u drive on wrong side of the road for the same reason????

Yes, I regularly ride a motor cycle &/or bicycle on the wrong side of the road. Sometimes it is ridiculous the lack of u-turns.

[tingtongteesood]

Never had this problem, but then I add up everything before it is checked out and I know how much my total should be. If they tell me something different I question it before I pay. Simple really.

[SOTIRIOS]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

...reduced items are often further 'reduced to clear' in the system...but it may take ages to update the price.....

[XaS]

When i was in my first days in Thailand i went to buy something from 7-11 near don muang.

price was around 100 baht so i payed with 1000. i got my change and went outside after few steps i look at the receipt and it said i gave 900 instead of 1000. wich i think is a bit weird to pay like that.

So i went back inside asking my money back showing the receipt and i got laughed at my face and they showed no interest.

"no you pay receip ok"

i left after 10 min.

Sent from my GT-I9082L using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[mooris7]

Unfortunately it's an occurrence which happens at many supermarkets in Thailand. I don't know if it is with intend or not, but I know of one supermarket where I often shop and where it has never happened.

Then there is an extra big supermarket where it happens very frequently, every other shopping trip I have at least one item that's priced wrong and never to the advantage of the customer, however I keep shopping there because if you notice it you get the item free.

You know this is a common occurrence in most grocery stores anywhere in the world! It has happened to me back he in Toronto, many places in China, and now in Thailand. The op leads us to believe this happens more frequently in Thailand to foreigners which is not the case!

[jbrain]

When i was in my first days in Thailand i went to buy something from 7-11 near don muang.

price was around 100 baht so i payed with 1000. i got my change and went outside after few steps i look at the receipt and it said i gave 900 instead of 1000. wich i think is a bit weird to pay like that.

So i went back inside asking my money back showing the receipt and i got laughed at my face and they showed no interest.

"no you pay receip ok"

i left after 10 min.

Sent from my GT-I9082L using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

I had a similar event once when paying my electricity bill at the local 7/11, but I noticed it while I was still in front of the check out counter.

First he made attempt as if he didn't understand English anymore, but when he noticed that my adrenaline level was rising quite fast, he just picked up the 100 baht note he had dropped in front of his checkout tiil and said you mean this ?

[marell]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

Good luck?? If you buy something you pay for it. Guaranteed at the end of the day some minimum wage employee got stuck holding the bag for the money you stole. You can make up any excuse you want but it's still called theft. If you had any sense of integrity, you'd be ashamed of yourself. But I suppose that's not likely.

Edited September 16, 2013 by marell

[jbrain]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

Good luck?? If you buy something you pay for it. Guaranteed at the end of the day some minimum wage employee got stuck holding the bag for the money you stole. Yes, it's theft. If you had any sense of integrity, you'd be ashamed of yourself. But I suppose that's not likely.

The apologists have clearly entered the thread.

[marell]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

Good luck?? If you buy something you pay for it. Guaranteed at the end of the day some minimum wage employee got stuck holding the bag for the money you stole. Yes, it's theft. If you had any sense of integrity, you'd be ashamed of yourself. But I suppose that's not likely.

The apologists have clearly entered the thread.

Please be specific. Maybe you can enlighten us.

Edited September 16, 2013 by marell

[JO1973]

Unfortunately it's an occurrence which happens at many supermarkets in Thailand. I don't know if it is with intend or not, but I know of one supermarket where I often shop and where it has never happened.

Then there is an extra big supermarket where it happens very frequently, every other shopping trip I have at least one item that's priced wrong and never to the advantage of the customer, however I keep shopping there because if you notice it you get the item free.

Yes, 9 times out of 10 it's intended. Let's face it, how many people really look at their recepit after shopping at the supermarket?

[jbrain]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

Good luck?? If you buy something you pay for it. Guaranteed at the end of the day some minimum wage employee got stuck holding the bag for the money you stole. Yes, it's theft. If you had any sense of integrity, you'd be ashamed of yourself. But I suppose that's not likely.

The apologists have clearly entered the thread.

Please be specific. Maybe you can enlighten us.

Customer pays what is printed on the receipt . In which way can he be considered a thief and how the cashier can be held responsible accepting price which is wrongly entered in the database ?

[khunPer]

Unfortunately it's an occurrence which happens at many supermarkets in Thailand. I don't know if it is with intend or not, but I know of one supermarket where I often shop and where it has never happened.

Then there is an extra big supermarket where it happens very frequently, every other shopping trip I have at least one item that's priced wrong and never to the advantage of the customer, however I keep shopping there because if you notice it you get the item free.

I think it happens all over the World, even more often in my Western European home country, than I ever noticed here.

I do not think it is intended at all – at least in markets using scan-codes – but merely something to do with updating computer systems or a misread scan-code.

If you do not have a rough idea about your total amount, it is always good to follow the prices on the display or check the reciept immediately.

Edited September 16, 2013 by khunPer

[marell]

Customer pays what is printed on the receipt . In which way can he be considered a thief and how the cashier can be held responsible accepting price which is wrongly entered in the database ?

If you believe you've been undercharged you should say something. If the cashier made a mistake they will pay out of pocket for it. Yes, it could have been a database error, but it also could have been an honest mistake by the cashier. But the OP clearly thought he was getting away (..."thought of it as a little payback") with something and didn't even ask. Sorry (like that?) but I think it's wrong. This is finished.

Edited September 16, 2013 by marell

[arminbkk]

I usually buy the same items at 7-11 so

I know to about how much it should amount.

Anyway, I always watch while they scan each item and look at the checkout screen.

When the total comes up I while always try to give close to exact change and at the same time

calculate how much I should get back.

And then I watch (and count) as they themselves count the change they will give back to me.

I have to add that I usually go to the same branches.

Of course, the more items there are, the bigger the chance of a mistake, honest or otherwise.

[tetleythedog]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

More like dishonesty, glad to see that some farangs are dishonest,the same as some non farangs.I odnt buy the excuse also, 2 wrongs dont make a right.Do u drive on the pavement with a scooter,and say, well thais do it,do u drive on wrong side of the road for the same reason????

Yep !!!

[super22k]

Watch your 100bt and 1,000bt notes. They are very similar. Many a tourist has been given a 100bt note instead of a 1,000. It helps if you watch the shop assistant closely

[KittenKong]

Customer pays what is printed on the receipt . In which way can he be considered a thief and how the cashier can be held responsible accepting price which is wrongly entered in the database ?

If you believe you've been undercharged you should say something. If the cashier made a mistake they will pay out of pocket for it. Yes, it could have been a database error, but it also could have been an honest mistake by the cashier.

If an item is scanned and comes up a certain price and the cashier collects that amount then the till will balance at the end of the shift and there will be no discrepancy to be compensated for. This is how POS registers work.

Only if the cashier collects an amount different to that on the till receipt will there be a discrepancy; e.g. if they give change from 1000B when they only received 500B. In that case it would indeed be very mean for a (relatively) well-off customer to keep the extra 500B change as this could come out of the pocket of the employee.

[XaS]

Watch your 100bt and 1,000bt notes. They are very similar. Many a tourist has been given a 100bt note instead of a 1,000. It helps if you watch the shop assistant closely

Yes this happened to me also not so long after 7-11 story i posted earlyer.

still strugling with jetlag and everything new i wanted to pay the taxi i gave him 1000 note and he started doing stuff i thought he looking for change then he turn around and say i have no change and give me back 100 note.

i was alone in the cab i said i gave 1000 you give 100 back and then he suddenly didnt understand english and started talking thai.

there was nothing i could do about it.

after learning some thai i knew what he said and called me white bird shit.

i avoid pink taxi's since then

i still love this country however

Sent from my GT-I9082L using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[NoshowJones]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

More like dishonesty, glad to see that some farangs are dishonest,the same as some non farangs.I odnt buy the excuse also, 2 wrongs dont make a right.Do u drive on the pavement with a scooter,and say, well thais do it,do u drive on wrong side of the road for the same reason????

Yes, I regularly ride a motor cycle &/or bicycle on the wrong side of the road. Sometimes it is ridiculous the lack of u-turns.

I have also rode on the wrong side of the rode for the very reasons you mention after missing my left turn, but only where there is a hard shoulder. But I would like to think that I used common sense when there was oncoming motorbike riders, I pulled in as far as I could and came to a complete stop until the motorbike passed me, to prevent him/her from pulling out in front of the traffic.

[louse1953]

I just assumed everybody does a quick cheque on all receipts, ido it when visiting any country

I do it in my own country.

[tropo]

I usually buy the same items at 7-11 so

I know to about how much it should amount.

Anyway, I always watch while they scan each item and look at the checkout screen.

When the total comes up I while always try to give close to exact change and at the same time

calculate how much I should get back.

And then I watch (and count) as they themselves count the change they will give back to me.

I have to add that I usually go to the same branches.

Of course, the more items there are, the bigger the chance of a mistake, honest or otherwise.

On the odd occasion I've had to query an obvious (intentional) "mistake" at 7Eleven. You'll be amazed how quickly the shortfall comes out of the till if you point it out. This is more common early morning when they think customers could be drunk.

Edited September 16, 2013 by tropo

[Mur]

I've lived in The UK, Aus, Thailand and NZ. I always check supermarket receipts on principle as I believe they almost certainly put special prices on many items then omit to enter that price in the till. I have found that thailand was the one country where this very seldom happened to me. In the other countries particularly NZ this happens 1 in 3 trips to the supermarket. The error is never in the shoppers' favour. These powerful companies know all the tricks inc putting the exp items at eye level, regularly moving things around as they know that every minute they can keep you in there equals more $. The list goes on. Many of them will give you the item you have been overcharged for, free. But they also know that very few people actually go thru the receipt. Keep em honest and check your bill

[morpheusatloppers]

It happens. At a supermarket (that has branches in the UK - no names, no pack-drill) I noticed an item on my receipt that cost 1,500-odd baht. Not recalling buying any food item that cost THAT much, I asked my (Thai) wife what it was (it was in Thai).

She said it was mince.

I got my money back without fuss, but it occurred after - how did THAT happen? I mean, fifteen hundred baht's worth of mince would be a SUITCASE full - WAY more than would be sold at a supermarket.

Now I ALWAYS check my receipts...

[Munger]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

Good luck?? If you buy something you pay for it. Guaranteed at the end of the day some minimum wage employee got stuck holding the bag for the money you stole. Yes, it's theft. If you had any sense of integrity, you'd be ashamed of yourself. But I suppose that's not likely.

The apologists have clearly entered the thread.

The apologists ALWAYS, ALWAYS do.

[Pattayaparadise]

Customer pays what is printed on the receipt . In which way can he be considered a thief and how the cashier can be held responsible accepting price which is wrongly entered in the database ?

If you believe you've been undercharged you should say something. If the cashier made a mistake they will pay out of pocket for it. Yes, it could have been a database error, but it also could have been an honest mistake by the cashier. But the OP clearly thought he was getting away (..."thought of it as a little payback") with something and didn't even ask. Sorry (like that?) but I think it's wrong. This is finished.

Hmm? I am the OP, I did not 'think I was getting away' with anything. I was charged 4x the price for something and only realized whilst having a quick look down my receipt when leaving the shop, and returned to get my money back.

I was overcharged, not undercharged.

I have been undercharged once before at a stall at a shopping mall here. I paid for a 250 baht item with a 500 baht note and was handed 750 baht change. I immediately reminded the girl that I paid with a 500 baht note, and gave her 500 baht back. I prefer to be honest, as I would like to be treated the same way.

[Pattayaparadise]

Unfortunately it's an occurrence which happens at many supermarkets in Thailand. I don't know if it is with intend or not, but I know of one supermarket where I often shop and where it has never happened.

Then there is an extra big supermarket where it happens very frequently, every other shopping trip I have at least one item that's priced wrong and never to the advantage of the customer, however I keep shopping there because if you notice it you get the item free.

You know this is a common occurrence in most grocery stores anywhere in the world! It has happened to me back he in Toronto, many places in China, and now in Thailand. The op leads us to believe this happens more frequently in Thailand to foreigners which is not the case!

I never mentioned anything in my OP about this happening towards foreigners only.

[tropo]

Could be a scam, could be incompetence. Just as an example to show it works both ways, I bought a small item at the department store in Central a few days ago. I had been expecting to pay the sticker price which said 450 baht, which was itself reduced. But I was only charged 100 baht. I realised as I was being given my change that something was amiss and sure enough the receipt did show 100 baht. I thought of this as a little payback for all the times I have paid a "falang" price in Thailand (lots of sall things, 10 extra baht here, 20 baht extra there, but it adds up to a very big annoyance)...no intention of letting them know....I saw it as a sign of good luck.

Good luck?? If you buy something you pay for it. Guaranteed at the end of the day some minimum wage employee got stuck holding the bag for the money you stole. Yes, it's theft. If you had any sense of integrity, you'd be ashamed of yourself. But I suppose that's not likely.

The apologists have clearly entered the thread.

The apologists ALWAYS, ALWAYS do.

... and then comes the people complaining about them. Seriously... calling people "apologists" is extremely lame, especially in a thread such as this.

[tropo]

It happens. At a supermarket (that has branches in the UK - no names, no pack-drill) I noticed an item on my receipt that cost 1,500-odd baht. Not recalling buying any food item that cost THAT much, I asked my (Thai) wife what it was (it was in Thai).

She said it was mince.

I got my money back without fuss, but it occurred after - how did THAT happen? I mean, fifteen hundred baht's worth of mince would be a SUITCASE full - WAY more than would be sold at a supermarket.

Now I ALWAYS check my receipts...

It's not that much if you buy high grade mince. Maybe 5 or 6 kg for 1500 baht.