Growing Problem

08/08/2006 Rob H. says:

I hate to have to post something like this, but since it has happened to me on several occasions at several different places I thought I should say something. Awhile back I started saving and comparing my restaurant receipts to make sure my total (total + tax + tip) matched what my bank statement said. Well, I was in for a bit of  a surprise. On more than one instance the total did not match. Just to clarify, this was after the transaction had posted - sometimes restaurants will put a "hold" on a debit card that will include a tip that might be different than what you actually give. However, that amount is corrected once the real amount posts. I had talked with the bank just to make sure they didn't have some weird quirk in their system - they did not. This has happened to me in restaurants, coffee shops, and even pizza delivery. It hasn't happened too often, but it's definitely happening with alarming frequency. What's especially infuriating is that I typically give a 20% tip! I don't like posting these bad news thingies, but I have a feeling a lot of people are getting scammed out of a few bucks -- which may not matter much, but still it's pretty annoying (and illegal).