Charitable Vending Machines

[Camikaze]

Today at the train station, in return for my $3.90, I received a bottle of Coke (though I almost had to do a Homer Simpson for it) and $4.10 change (instead of just 10c). I took the money, but I'm not sure if that's what you're meant to do. If you were buying something in a shop and you were given incorrect change, you'd point it out and give it back (or would you?), but as far as I know, it's socially accepted that if a machine gives you incorrect change, you can take it, even though it's just as unjust an enrichment (and we'd certainly feel ripped off if it were the other way around).

So do you take the money and keep it? Give it to a homeless person or a charity? Leave it for the next person? Hand it in to the station attendant (or whoever's property the machine is)? What is the socially acceptable course of action when you've made a profit out of a vending machine?

 

[Zelig]

you'd point it out and give it back (or would you?)

If it's a locally-owned shop, yes, otherwise no.

edit: Actually, probably still yes if I'm buying from a physical person at a non-local shop, but if it's non local, I'm almost certainly buying online - if they don't pay their IT staff enough and their online system undercharges me, I'm keeping the difference.

 

[ainwood]

Did it give you the change, or was there already $4 in the slot from the previous poor sap who'd put $4 in there, but the machine didn't recognize their cash?

 

[BvBPL]

I've always kept any vending machine errors in my favor on account of the number of times vending machines have eaten my dollars and not given me anything in return.

Largely, the errors in my favor are about 10% of the size of those errors against me.

 

[Camikaze]

It spat out the whole lot at me. So it did recognise my money, but when I made my selection, two $2 coins came out with the 10c.

 

[azzaman333]

Errors by machines should be exploited.

 

[Catharsis]

Sooner or later the machines will start exploiting us, and you'll stand to lose a lot more than $4 then. You may as well enjoy the last dregs of our superiority.

 

[Tee Kay]

I've always kept any vending machine errors in my favor on account of the number of times vending machines have eaten my dollars and not given me anything in return.

Largely, the errors in my favor are about 10% of the size of those errors against me.

Ditto on both counts.

 

[rugbyLEAGUEfan]

If you were buying something in a shop and you were given incorrect change, you'd point it out and give it back (or would you?)

Assuming that you would give it back , let's say you leave the shop and subsequently realise you have been given extra change . Let's also say it's $50 (a large enough amount to inconvenience the shop keeper) and it's just a small local vendor .

What is the accepted distance from the shop that you must travel before you no longer feel obliged to return ?

On vending machines....I'm keeping it , you're keeping it . Period.

 

[Bamspeedy]

A machine not giving the right change, you should pocket the extra because sooner or later machines will eat your money or not give you enough change back.

Speaking of vendors......I went to the hardware store and special ordered a door. I couldn't figure out why the door was coming in 5 boxes, but they all had my name on it. Get home and find out I got the door I ordered and then 4 more storm/screen doors.
Two employees loaded it into my truck and I got through the security gate with them. Now I got to take them all back (I have no use for all those doors), and this is probably $600 worth of doors.

 

[ParkCungHee]

Today at the train station, in return for my $3.90, I received a bottle of Coke (though I almost had to do a Homer Simpson for it) and $4.10 change (instead of just 10c). I took the money, but I'm not sure if that's what you're meant to do. If you were buying something in a shop and you were given incorrect change, you'd point it out and give it back (or would you?), but as far as I know, it's socially accepted that if a machine gives you incorrect change, you can take it, even though it's just as unjust an enrichment (and we'd certainly feel ripped off if it were the other way around).

If a vending machine is charging you 4 dollars for a coke, I don't think you're the one who has to worry if he's behaving ethically in this situation.

 

[Quackers]

Haha I was going to say that Park, what a rip off
That is £2.53 in sterling, if I ever buy a coke from a vendign machine (500 ML) It costs me £1.20 XD
Based on this injustice Cami, keep it.

 

[Tee Kay]

Food, drinks and stuff in general here are criminally expensive, and doubly so from vending machines. I never use them.

 

[Camikaze]

I've always kept any vending machine errors in my favor on account of the number of times vending machines have eaten my dollars and not given me anything in return.

Largely, the errors in my favor are about 10% of the size of those errors against me.

Vending machines are one singular business, though. If Shop A is ripping you off, you wouldn't take extra change from Shop B just to balance it out. I've never been ripped off by CityRail machines.

Assuming that you would give it back , let's say you leave the shop and subsequently realise you have been given extra change . Let's also say it's $50 (a large enough amount to inconvenience the shop keeper) and it's just a small local vendor .

What is the accepted distance from the shop that you must travel before you no longer feel obliged to return ?

If you have to travel, I'm not sure (but what if your 'small local vendor' is 50km away?). If it's somewhere close or where you go past every day, you'd definitely give them the money. Another factor is whether you have their contact details. Should you just be obliged to contact them, or actually take the money back?

If a vending machine is charging you 4 dollars for a coke, I don't think you're the one who has to worry if he's behaving ethically in this situation.

Haha I was going to say that Park, what a rip off
That is £2.53 in sterling, if I ever buy a coke from a vendign machine (500 ML) It costs me £1.20 XD
Based on this injustice Cami, keep it.

Welcome to Sydney.

600mL, though, and yeah, vending machines (pretty much always $3.50 or $3.80) are a bit more expensive than buying at a shop (got one recently for $3.50, though that was higher than normal). Though I don't regularly buy Coke, so maybe this is just city prices (does Coke have 'city prices'?). I know I can get LA Ice (cheap dodgy coke) for $1, but it's so sugary you can feel the granules.

 

[downtown]

If it is a small shop, I'll give the extra money to the guy at the counter. If the machine gives me a free item, hey, I'm keeping it...payback for all the times the machine takes my money and doesn't give me a pop.

If it's the vending machine at work (the one I use the most), I am pounding it again and again to try and squeeze more money out of it....because why the hell is a pepsi 1.25??

 

[Zelig]

Food, drinks and stuff in general here are criminally expensive, and doubly so from vending machines. I never use them.

This is true, I think it's been over a decade since I last used a vending machine.

 

[imperialman]

Errors by machines should be exploited.

Agreed, we have to keep them from rising.

 

[Narz]

If it's a locally-owned shop, yes, otherwise no.

This, generally, except replace local with small business. If a small-business undercharges me I'll point it out, in the off chance I'm at Walmart (generally with the intent to return the item later anyway) and I get undercharged I'll be keeping the extra.

Only vending machine I use nowadays is for train tickets & if I got undercharged I wouldn't be bothered to correct the matter.

 

[Tecknojock]

Why the differentiation between small businesses and large ones? Many places take accounting errors out of the employees paycheck, so your not hurting the company, but rather the minimum wage worker at the register.

 

[Catharsis]

Agreed, we have to keep them from rising.

It won't keep them from rising, nothing will. The writing is already on the wall and it is in binary.