[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Short-Changed $10 (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 10/13/2007 4:11:43 PM EDT
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We were hungry last night around 10pm, and did not feel like preparing anything, so my SO went to Cookout (ff restaraunt). Before she left, I gave her a $20 bill. I tell her I want a "Double-burger" basket (double burger= 2 beef patties). She comes home with the food. When I unwrap my burger, I think to myself, "damn, are these burgers getting smaller or what?" It did not dawn on me that the gave me a regular burger until later. I ask my SO for my change, and suddenly she remebers the girl never gave her back her change. She checks to make sure, and confirms she did not get back the change. She says our order was $10.64, and she gave the girl $20.64 so she would get back a $10. We look for the phone # to the place, but it is unlisted. 411 has no record of it either, all they can pull up is one nearby in Charlotte. Same with the computer yellow pages. Upon calling the one in Charlotte, they cannot find the # for the store I need. We ride up there around 11:30. Long story short, the manager says "Oh, well we don't count that drawer down until 3am, so we won't know until then. We tell him fine, call us at 3am and leave a message on our answering maching. Wake up this morning, and no message. I get time, and ride up there again, and tell a different manager my story. He calls the manager from last night who tells him the drawer was not $10 over, and it was just too bad. The manager on duty offers to leave a note up saying they owe me $10 in food, but he could not give me my $10. Anyhow, the place has awesome food, and it is way better the McDonald's or Burger King and what not. We eat there probably 3-4 times a week (college student life-style, you know), and spend $10-12 every time. Thing about it is, this kind of pisses me off, and I really don't want to eat there any more, because it kind of ruins it for me. I think it is bullshit they did not count the drawer down then, as they had 2 others up and running. All the wait did was give the manager or the employee who overheard our story a chance to pocket the $10. $10 isn't alot to loose, but it is the premise of the whole thing. It cost me 3 trips (including initial food run) because said manager did not call us like he said he would. It is 5 miles there and back, so all in all 30 miles to get this resolved. Should I just have let it go and gave them my $10 because they short changed me? I mean, they did not even give us what we ordered. Hell, the way I look at it, $10 is on my way to buying another case of .30-06 from the CMP, or another brick of .22lr to plink with. Sorry, I just wanted to vent. How about your bad fast-food stories? |
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Why aren't you pissed at your SO for walking out without the change? She's just as responsible to make sure she gets it, as the FF place is to give it to her, since it was your money. Did you call your SO's parents to ask why they didn't teach her to get change better? 
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The problem around here is getting home and finding out that something is missing- like burgers, fries, etc. There is one FF place that does it all the time- unfortunately my kids love it. I had one manage to distract me and keep my credit card. I noticed that in about 2 minutes, went back and they couldn't find it. I told the twerp kid manager to not try to use it as it would be reported stolen immediately. It's only $10.00- from you. I wonder how many others they do that to? Jim |
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If it's an honest mistake that's made, that's fine, and understandable. For example, I order seven diff't things, and they forget to put one in the bag. Hey, no one's perfect. Things are gonna happen to you that piss you off. You're gonna have to learn to let some stuff slide. Your GF giving the clerk $20.64 for a $10.64 fast food ticket isn't something that says to me "OMG, there's no way to fuck that up." I mean, US paper money doesn't look all that diff't, especially if you're 1) dumb [which many FF employees are] 2) disinterested - [which most FF employees are] 3) working quickly - [which many FF people are, especially in drive-thrus]. How often do you think people claim getting shortchanged at a fast food place? Shit, I bet it happens 10x a day. Taking a minute to count the drawer probably annoys them. Remember, you get what you pay for. If you don't like it, and it's such a matter of principle, then don't eat there anymore. Eventually, if it is really something they're doing, they'll either have to stop or close down due to lack of customers. |
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Of course the till was counted back without being $10 over. The person pocketed your change. A good manager would have offered you $10 credit on the spot (as they couldn't verify you weren't lying) and taken a keener interest in the person who handled money that night. |
| Shit happens. If you like the place, take your $10 gift card (or request a little more, for your trouble of transportation, etc) and use the gift cards. Given her inattention to the matter, your girlfriend very well could have misplaced it just as easy as the drive thru worker forgot to give it back to her. |
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20 bucks says, that the register is NOT $10 over. The person that gave you the food (drive through?), realised your SO drove off without the change, and got a a free 10 bucks. I would have suggested asking them to review the video's of that night. Usually places have camera's looking at the cash registers, for employees steeling etc... Unfortunatly if it happened over a day ago, you may be too late... |
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Dont go back. There is a place here in town that has the best burgers ever. One night I sat in line for 15 min. to get my burgers. When I got up to the window dude turns the lights out and say "sorry we're closed". I explained how I had been waiting for 15 min. and just wanted a couple of burgers. No go. I told him that was crap, because he saw me waiting, and knew I was there, and turned the light off as soon as I got up to the window. He didnt care. I had to go to Wendy's. I will never be back, people who act like that will go out of biddness in no time flat. Don't go back. |
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I don't know..... I think you did pretty good. You could have reacted like this guy. youtube.com/watch?v=VY9wbP_zZkI |
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I don't trust anyone with my food order unless I'm expecting dissapointment. My mother brings us lunch about once a week. She never checks her order when she's at the drive through and then has a "woe is me" attitude when something's missing or wrong. I keep asking her why she didn't check the order and she just replies,"I just didn't." She goes to the same places over and over again after saying she won't go back. I would complain on their corporate website and then complain about it on consumerist.com. Lots of people get there problems resolved after it hits the consumerist. |
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hate to be a prick, but why on earth didn't you check on the change situation at the time? my point is that two people made a mistake--the cashier and you. so what justification do you have to get up in arms about it? don't get me wrong--i understand that it's frustrating and you're out the $10, but when things like this happen to me, my first reaction is "well, that was stupid of me for not verifying it". and as for the company's attempt at investigation, trust me--you have no idea just how many times a day people pull the "short-changed" scam just to see if they can make a buck. i'm NOT saying that you are this kind of person, but the manager of the store certainly doesn't know that--without video, all they have to go on is the drawer count and the trustworthiness of the cashier. now, as a manager, if you satisfied me that you truly believed that you were shorted (which you obviously were), i would make things right by you even if it meant losing money, because good guest relations always pay off in the end. but i would have to talk to you in person to verify it. this episode is a perfect example of my philosophy of life, which has been labelled "pragmatic barbarism" by my friends. the central tenet of PB is that the victim is always to blame--when bad things happen to me, they are my fault, because i am the only person in the world that is responsible for me. |
Hmmmmm, Cookout. I like their burgers cheddar style Anyways, it is extremely hard to find out much info about Cook-Out. Google doesn't reveal much about it. They've got me a couple of times before, but I always check before I leave the place. Just like any fast food place. Hope you get your stuff straight. |
Yeah, they don't have a website, and the 800# on their cups is to their corporate office that is only open like 7-5 M-F. I'll call them tomorrow and see what they say. I would not be so pissed if the manager had called us like he was supposed to and I didn't have to drive back and forth. When stuff like this happens, I think a place should give enough to make the customer feel he got the better end of the deal. Maybe a $20 gift certificate to account for time and gas you know. I know there will be people that try and take advantage of that sort of thought, but we eat there all the time and have never complained. I know she did not mis-place the money. She was just distracted by her cousin and the baby which have |
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I will not use drive up windows. I have had my shit messed up way too many times. I find it easier to just park, go inside and make sure the order is correct. If you decide that you are never gonna go back to the FF place, maybe you should dump your G/F too, since she was 50% at fault for you losing $10. |
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Avoid drive-through transactions. Period. It is always worth the extra time to go in and do the transaction eyeball to eyeball, especially with bank deposits. That way you at least have a name or good visual description of the person handling your money. Plus, the whole thing is much more likely to be on security camera. Transactions in person have the element of 'I am here watching you handling my money' to them, while drive through lacks the 'verifiable, in-person' component. Even honest people make mistakes, but your short-change event wasn't one of them. Someone helped him or herself to the $10.00. Sure, drive-through is convenient. But the occassional opportunistic short-change-event, and the occassional honest mistake, are the hidden tax on convenience. |
This is the correct answer. Don't be upset with the restaurant. Be upset with your distracted SO who (says she) didn't pick up the change. Think of it this way. WHY would a business take someone's word for it (an hour and a half after the transaction) that "you shorted me 10 bucks in change, and I want it now."? If you owned a high-volume business such as a FF restaurant, would you take someone's word for it? I sure wouldn't. There's absolutely no proof here. You have second hand information (from your SO who was "distracted" as you put it) that someone didn't give them change. Life lesson: Don't be distracted when dealing with money. |
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I posted a thread almost identical to this last Monday. I gave a clerk at the Tiger tote $60 for gas, he switched out a bill, and gave me $41 instead. I complained to the manger, but the drawer was balanced. I have filed a complaint with Exxon Corporate (since it was a company store) and talked with another Exxon manager, and to the police. At that time, the police said I should have called them immediately. Zoom forward to last night, and I discussed it with my neighbor the cop. He told me to get the employees name and file the report regardless. I only got halfway into the story before he added, that was at the Tiger Tote, wasn't it - then described the kid. The kid tried to short him 2 weeks ago when he was off duty. Perhaps yours was actually an accident - but when you find out it wasn't, just remember you are probably not the only victim. |
it's also served cold, but typically it's a special dish for someone who deserves it, not some punk kid working a drivethru. Kid probably just noticed the change and thought she was paying exact amount and tossed it in the drawer. Then when cashing out the drawer, found it ten bucks over and decided it was easier to pocket it than go through whatever process is necessary for the drawer when it is over (not sure, since i never worked ff.) As far as the SO, i've seen some really smart people do really stupid things in drivethrus, including paying, getting the card back, and driving away before they hand over the food. People make mistakes when they arent paying attention. Ten bucks just isnt that damned serious. and i personally would give an occasional extra $10 if they'd build a cookout around here. I used to make regular trips there when i'd visit my friends at NC state. mmm Cajun Style. |
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All too often, I encounter a similar thing. Let's say that the tab comes to $4.07. I don't really want $.93 change rattling in my pocket. Here's how it goes. Clerk says that the total is $4.07. I already have a $5.00 bill in my hand. I hand it over with one hand while digging for the .07 with the other. Even though I said that I have .07, the clerk enters $5.00 into the cash register. I hand over the .07 and the clerk is stopped like a deer in the headlights. They don't know what to do. I have to prompt them to give me $1.00 back. They are very slow. I don't know if it's a school failing or what?? |
You were offered a ten buck grub credit; probably the best they could do without making some minimum wage employee make it up out of their own pocket. They probably have a lot of people trying to bullshit them. |
Try going one step further and getting a bill like $4.26 and giving them a tenspot and a penny. The look on their face would suggest you are giving them foreign currency. |
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I always count my change. Not like count out every penny, but I know what I'm expecting back, and I look through to see if what I see agrees with what I think I should see. But getting an offer for $10 in food is far better than getting nothing at all. Sorry, but if I managed a fast food place and somebody came in talking about how "I was through here about an hour ago, and you guys stiffed me on my change", my reaction is pretty much going to be that it's a little late now, and that if a drawer count turns up that amount, that's one thing, but other than that... If they start handing out cash to everyone who asks for it, pretty soon there'll be a line out the door of people who "forgot" their change. |