HiLo 'warning'

[SoonComeNegril]

We did a big grocery trip at HiLo last week. Food, drinks, lots of stuff. The bill was $28,000 J. I was not watching the price of each item as it was scanned (too busy sweating!). When we got home, I looked at the receipt and noticed that a "B Free $200 Phone Card" for $200 (+ $50 tax) J had been purchased.

We did not buy a phone card. We bought enough minutes (money) at Mega Mart to last us the trip.

Last year, I bought minutes at HiLo and was given the little cards with the codes to type into the phone to redeem the money.

So for this "purchase" I don't know if the cashier intentionally scammed us by charging us for the phone card and palming it for herself/friend, or if was just been a mistake.

It's a paltry sum of money, but I will be more watchful in the future.

[captaind]

So for this "purchase" I don't know if the cashier intentionally scammed us by charging us for the phone card and palming it for herself/friend, or if was just been a mistake.

My opinion........... The cashier would not take a chance of losing a good job by stealing 250.

Probably a mistake..but what do I know?

Cap

[Bnewb]

Please check your receipts for accuracy and make sure you have all your purchased items when you leave HiLo.

[Jamerican71]

We did a big grocery trip at HiLo last week. Food, drinks, lots of stuff. The bill was $28,000 J. I was not watching the price of each item as it was scanned (too busy sweating!). When we got home, I looked at the receipt and noticed that a "B Free $200 Phone Card" for $200 (+ $50 tax) J had been purchased.

We did not buy a phone card. We bought enough minutes (money) at Mega Mart to last us the trip.

Last year, I bought minutes at HiLo and was given the little cards with the codes to type into the phone to redeem the money.

So for this "purchase" I don't know if the cashier intentionally scammed us by charging us for the phone card and palming it for herself/friend, or if was just been a mistake.

It's a paltry sum of money, but I will be more watchful in the future.

I know it's a paltry amount but did you go back to have it corrected?

[Marko]

you need to check and make sure you got everything you paid for at the store......yea mi know it's a pain in da ass......
but rather be safe than sorry......mi shop at the stores and supermarkets at least twice a week.....
and usually once a month mi catch sumthin......either dem didn't put an item in one of mi bags....
or they over charged mi for sumthin like a veggie or fruit.......and for some reason "butter" is my biggest culprit....
probably cause the baggers put dat in a seperate bag and then forget to put it in with the groceries......
as far as a cashier or bagger playing games and trying to thief sumthin.....doesn't happen......
like the above boardie said....they will loose dat valuable job if they try any of that lame ass chit......true

the phone card thingy was probably from a previous customer that they mistakenly put on your total by mistake.....

oh with HiLo you can't ever go by what is the prices are marked on the shelf.....you need to go to the cashier for a price check for the correct price......
it is a rare occasion when the actual price on the shelf matches what comes out at da register.....wi all complain about...and even the home office knows...
but for some reason HiLo just don't want to have a pricing coordinator in the stores changing the price tags.......in Negril they are the worst offenders by a mile

the money changers are the dangerous guys to watch if you worried about getting ripped off when around dem shopping places......

Cool Runnings, Marko

[SoonComeNegril]

No, partly out of not wanting to walk back, and partly due to not wanting to make an issue. I was going to go back and speak with the manager, but if they would not have refunded the charge, then I would have felt the need the boycott the store.

I'm chalking it up to a learning experience to be more watchful.

95% of our experiences in Jamaica are positive, and I make a concerted effort to not be that tourist that is suspicious of being ripped off by locals. But things, intentional or not, do happen.

The cashier at Hammonds gave me a nice chiding when I gave her 3,000 J instead of 300. Gotta get back to Canada and coloured bills!

[M&G Montreal]

I always check my bills, usually as they are being rung through, even here at home - maybe it's my Scottish genes. In my favour, I point out under charging as well as over charging.

[Bnewb]

95% of our experiences in Jamaica are positive, and I make a concerted effort to not be that tourist that is suspicious of being ripped off by locals. But things, intentional or not, do happen.

The cashier at Hammonds gave me a nice chiding when I gave her 3,000 J instead of 300. Gotta get back to Canada and coloured bills!

It's not a local ripping off a tourist thing...simply another person possibly ripping off another person just like anywhere ...as I mentioned already, just pay attention to the receipt and the groceries you leave with...

And, SoonComeNegril....the Jamaican money is coloured just like the Canadian money...

[JitterBug]

I've been using the little mini mart beside bar b barn. One particular cashier tried to scam me on every purchase. I ask for the bill each time. This cashier rounds off each purchase to an even amount and ups it. Numerous transactions repeatedly. It's annoying when it's done so blatantly.

[wrtiii]

No matter where we travel, there is a certain amount of money that dribbles away every day. We buy things we turn out not to need, we overpay for things, we buy things that turn out not to be any good (suspecting afterwards that the shopkeeper unloaded on us something he knew to be spoiled), we buy things that are supposedly local but turn out to be imported, and at the end of the day I can rarely completely account for how much I spent. I am careful with money and keep receipts, but I have had to train myself not to let myself dwell on this or it will ruin my vacation. it happens at home, too - I certainly have gotten home from my local grocery store to find that something I paid for didn't make it home with me, that I was charged the full price instead of the advertised sale price, that the small oranges I bought were rung up as large, and sometimes because of the computer codes one item got rung up as something completely different. I know it's hard, but don't let yourself dwell on these very small things, especially when on vacation. In Jamaica, I personally figure that as long as I keep the "dribbling away" to $10 per day, no problem, mon. YMMV of course, but that number works for me.

For comparison, every few years we manage to swing a vacation in Europe, and on average my wife manages to have an unanticipated $50. expense every day. I've just learned to budget for that. Didn't validate your ticket on the bus and the uniformed policeman stops you? Oops, $50. A guy in costume steps up and asks whether you'd like your picture taken with him? Oh, and would you like to include the whole group of guys in costume? Oops, $50. It's just life.