I found out after I got home that I was charged less than I should have been for a purchase. Is that stealing?
Question:
Hello,
After I came home today from a local grocery store and deli, I noticed that the cashier may have given me an extra change of 50 cents. I didn't notice until I got home because I thought the calculations were correct. The cashier said the total was $2.50. It also said so on the cash register. I handed him $3. I would expect 50 cents back and that was what he gave me. However, I know that one of the items was $1.75, and I'm not exactly sure about the other item, but I'm pretty sure it was $1 or $1.25 (at least $1). If the second item was $1.25, then $1.75 + $1.25 is $3 and I wouldn't have gotten any change at all. If the second item was $1, then $1.75 + $1 would be $2 and I would have gotten $1 for change.
I'm pretty confused and I don't know who the 50 cents should go to or where the 50 cents came from the calculation. If I had known about this when I was at the store, I would have asked the cashier about this, but unfortunately, I only realized it when I got home. What should I do?
Is this technically stealing, by definition? Because I think the definition of stealing is taking something that doesn't belong to you, right? I didn't intend to do anything wrong, as I only realized when I got home, so is this technically "stealing"?
Thanks!
Answer:
The problem these days is that the price on the shelves doesn't always match the price in the store's computers. For all you or I know, the $1.75 item was on sale today. You can always go back and check. If it doesn't match your receipt, then you can let the cashier know that there is a problem with the pricing and ask if they would like the difference back. Most likely the cashier will state that it was their error, so don't worry about it.
You did not steal. You paid what the clerk asked you to pay. That you didn't notice the price difference until later only means you missed observing a fact.
