The Barefoot Investor has urged Aussies to double-check how much they’re paying after a man was accidentally charged more than $1,000 for a sandwich.
Scott Pape, 46, said that he like many others simply tapped his card when buying and left without double-checking the price or even getting a receipt.
But he was shocked to read a letter from Natasha, whose husband was accidentally charged $1,300 for a $13 sandwich at a local bakery.
She said he ‘did his usual routine’ of ordering, tapping his card, entering his PIN and picking up the chicken sandwich before going on with his day.
Days later when he noticed the eye-watering cost, Natasha’s husband contacted the bakery to try and get a refund.
However, she claimed the owner ‘accused him of being a scammer and refused a refund’ for the charge while their bank said entering the PIN legitimised it.
Mr Pape was left shocked by the story advising the woman’s husband to set up a feature on his phone to avoid future mistakes.
‘Thankfully my bank flashes up the transaction on my Apple watch and phone after I leave the store,’ he wrote in his column the Herald Sun.
The Barefoot Investor, Scott Pape (pictured), has urged Aussies to check how much they have been charged on their bank app or by receipt after a man spent $1,300 on a sandwich
‘Your husband should definitely get that feature.’
Mr Pape added the couple should ‘gather the evidence’ and get the bank to verify the merchant was the bakery and to ask ‘very politely’ to reverse the transaction.
‘And if they refuse, I’d tell them that your next stop is to the police station where you’re intending to press charges for theft,’ he wrote.
Mr Pape said the story was a wake-up call and admitted he generally turns down the offer to grab a receipt when asked by staff working behind the register.
‘After all, most receipts are a waste of paper and ink,’ he wrote.
‘And I know that if I do take one, just to be nice, I’ll shove it in my pocket and it’ll invariably end up going through the wash and Liz will yell at me.
‘In fact, if I’m buying something cheap these days I don’t even hang around to get asked the question. I’m tapping, and I’m going!’
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) urges Aussies with an issue over a purchase to first contact the business.
‘Phone or visit the business and explain the problem and outcome you want. Do this as soon as possible,’ the ACCC website reads.
The man’s wife said the bakery where he got the sandwich was refusing to refund the charge and ‘accused him of being a scammer’ without the proof of purchase (stock image)
‘It can also be useful to set out your complaint to the business in writing, by an email or letter.
‘That way they’re clearly aware of the problem, what you want, and you have a record of your contact.’
If contacting the business fails to resolve a dispute however, a customer can bring legal action against the business.
The ACCC urges Aussies to seek legal consultation before escalating the issue and to take individual claims to state-run small claims courts or a tribunal.