I am now a criminal!

What rotten luck Georgesgran! We had a galling ‘mishap’ about 3 years ago, the only time we went to Carlisle, stopping to eat on a long journey. I parked up centrally, paid the car park fee, and off we went in search of sustenance. There was a major international football game on, the streets were teaming with extremely merry crowds. We quickly realised everywhere would be full so we were back in the car within 20 minutes and back on the road. We got a parking ticket in the post. I keep all parking tickets for ages having been bitten before, so I just sent a photo of the ticket. I was told it was the wrong ticket. We’d parked in a fairly small car park which apparently, belonged jointly to the stores either side. There was no way a stranger to town could know that. We paid at the nearest pay machine to where our car was parked but still got a fine. I wrote to the council saying how unfair that practice was was for visitors wanting to spend money in Carlisle, only to be told I should have gone to a council car park.

As everyone here may have noticed since lockdown, that the number of ‘zoom’ presenters, celebrities, Joe Wicks etc how often the internet would fade for a few seconds, no picture, voice, then the signal would return.
I ran a shop in a market town, and the number of times we lost the internet signal, when processing a sale, were numerous. Once the sale has been authorised, you then get an authorisation code to complete the sale. If the signal goes, in the few seconds from the sale being authorised, sometimes the money is not transferred into the shop/ garages bank account.
That’s why the customer gets the first copy and the shop/garage gets the second. In those few seconds after the first copy appears, the customer has often left the premises, not realising that the sale hasn’t been approved. The salesperson will register that the sale was approved and sometimes doesn’t realise the internet signal is weak.
ALWAYS get a receipt to protect you

when I lived in Portugal , the supermarkets there had a place at the entrance where you left your bag and got a tag to go round with. It worked well because you then had hands free to do you shopping and could not put items in your bag by accident. That meant that for the greater majority honest people it was easier and you didnt worry about being accused of stealing and those that wanted to steal would have had to have some special way to do it. You paid for your goods in their basket, took the basket to your bag , exchanged your tag and filled your bag and so again it was environmentally good as no wasted bags and I found it better to fill my basket at my own speed which you could do as this was not slowing the check out.

My son filled up with petrol at garage, paid and drove away luckily taking a receipt. Later that day the police called on him accusing him of a drive away petrol theft. He could produce the receipt and the only explanation given was the garage had had a lot of thefts by young men. No apology from them.

Lady Barnet had a compulsion to shoplift at her local shop and her son( I think) used to reimburse the shopkeeper .It was an amicable kind of private arrangement. The shop then changed ownership and the new owners charged her. She was so ashamed that she killed herself. Such a senseless tragedy.

Gabrielle56 you said you know the full facts about Richard Madeley, insinuating that feeling sorry for him was wrong.
I don't think you should make comments like that unless you support it with evidence.

Good grief georgesgran what a shock for you, and a lesson for the rest of us. Says the person who somehow put the same item in her Amazon basket twice and now has two of the same gift for her DH.

Btw, I thought they found that Isobel Barnet has pockets sewn inside her coat to stash the haul - or was that someone else?

Ever since Waitrose - no less - charged me twice for my shopping I have kept all receipts for three months. It's very easy if you have somewhere in the kitchen you can stuff them in and do a regular clear out. Quite instructive to see where all that money went too!

I recently paid customs duty to DH L for a shipment from Bulgaria by card and thought that was it done. A week later I got a very unpleasant threatening letter from them saying payment had not been received. When I checked my account sure enough the money hadn’t gone through. I will make very sure I check every transaction in future, but is it really necessary for DHL to be quite so unpleasant?

i put my shopping trolly into the supermarket trolly and always use the self scan, the staff get annoyed when i ask for the receipt as it always seem to stick, another time i shopliffted a kinder egg as it had rolled under my shopping trolly, i rushed into pay for it but customer services said just keep it and the girl just kept laughing at my honesty

I had the opposite problem! A few weeks ago on Sunday I did a trip from Wiltshire to Leighton Buzzard, then Leicester, then home. I filled up (low fuel in tank, cheapest diesel on my route) at Sainsbury's Chippenham on the way out and again on the way back. Looking at my phone later that evening I had a text message from my bank saying that they had declined the second transaction (I guess the same garage, large amounts twice). The garage was closed by the time I saw that, so called them first thing and they said look at my receipt (I did Pay at Pump) and for once got a receipt and it showed an authorisation code. They said don't worry! Contacted the bank and the amounts hadn't been posted yet! Finally on Monday morning both amounts had been taken from my account, so why I got a message (it was genuine) saying it had been declined I don't know, but I had visions of someone demanding money with menaces!

nadateturbe

Gabrielle56 I think you need to explain your comment.

Do You now? Interesting

nadateturbe

I remember a female celebrity arrested many years ago for shoplifting. Can't remember her name, but I felt so sorry for her. She claimed it was a mistake, and I believe it was.

It was Dame Isabel Barnet and she committed suicide with the shame of the prosecution. She was menopausal and probably (99%) genuinely brain fogged. They bounded her literally to death! She neither needed not planned to steal anything! Sad state of affairs when you see how pathetic excuses get real thieves "off"

Why on earth would you pay a fine for their uselessness?! Dispute it and don't pay their fine. They owe you... an apology!

I remember a female celebrity arrested many years ago for shoplifting. Can't remember her name, but I felt so sorry for her. She claimed it was a mistake, and I believe it was.

I always take a receipt, as you never know when it might be useful, and indeed it has been at times. I think that shops should encourage it as it could protect them in certain circumstances.

Gabrielle56 I think you need to explain your comment.

Happened to my daughter but she didn’t get a fine she just had to pay for the fuel.

Jess20

I did this in Waitrose about 15 years ago - no glasses, didn't see payment had failed. They knew I was a regular and told me the next time I went in. Still feel sorry for Richard Madeley who got done for forgetting to get all his shopping scanned properly. Easy to do, very careful these days.

You don't know the full facts of the Richard madeley episode,I do. I can only say .......you know not of what you speak..... allegedly....

I did this in Waitrose about 15 years ago - no glasses, didn't see payment had failed. They knew I was a regular and told me the next time I went in. Still feel sorry for Richard Madeley who got done for forgetting to get all his shopping scanned properly. Easy to do, very careful these days.

Thank you for the warning. I am often ill at ease paying for petrol if I can't pay at the pump as I can hear my dog howling in the car. That makes me think less clearly so this could happen to me so easily.

I no longer bother with Nectar points. Most of my shopping is done at the Co-op. Two rather good shops near me here, one of which has a petrol station.

Have you got an attractive ankle tag and a curfew now Georgesgran 🤣?

It's a myth that supermarket fuel is inferior to that sold at branded petrol stations. The exception might be if you are filling up with a premium fuel. Otherwise, it's all the same.

The reason supermarket prices are generally cheaper than branded is more to do with economy of scale, bulk buying capability and that supermarkets are competing to undercut one another on price.

More information here.

allstarcard.co.uk/resources/news-and-insights/supermarket-fuel/

Bonuses and special offers aside, Nectar points are only worth a half a penny. 200 points earns £1.

I believe the offer is one Nectar point for every litre of Esso fuel.

The AA report that the average gap between supermarket and branded pump prices is currently 1.9p per litre.

The tank of my small hatchback holds 40 litres. Were I to fill up at Esso, I would earn 40 Nectar points worth 20p but I would have paid an extra 76p for the fuel. The offer would have had to be for quadruple Nectar points to break even.

As a trader you can set what minimum limits you like, but not a good idea to turn away business however small, and a lot of card providers insist a trader does not have a minimum limit or risk being dropped. What you can no longer do in law is to charge a customer for using their card.