Customer took $20

[gijoecam]

Just a quick tip I learned a decade ago that helps prevent this type of thing from happening... Count the change back to them. It only takes a few seconds, and is easy enough to do, and assures they get the proper funds back. I used to count it out like you typically would removing it from teh till (i.e. dollars, then change) but found that if you do it the other way and count back up to what they gave you, it's always spot-on.

Also, I would lay their cash on the till sideways until I had counted back their change. That way they couldn't say, "I gave you a 20" when they gave me a ten. See? Here it is!

Example: Total comes to 7.49, and the customer hands me a 50, at which point the register would say change due: 42.51. Lay the 50 on the till, then scoop out 2-20s, 2-1s, and 51cents in change. Then, I would say, {handing them the change first} "seven fourty-nine and 51 cents makes 8, {counting out the two singles} nine, ten, {counting 20s} and twenty makes 30 and twenty makes 50. Now, if I'm shorting the customer, they and I BOTH know it. In two years of working the registers, I was never off by more than a nickel, and never had to argue with a customer about what they handed me or what they got for change.

-Joe

[Coconut]

I don't think I've ever had anyone scam in bills, but I have had someone scam on checks.

When I first started working as a cashier and didn't know any better, I didn't pay attention to the checks like I should have.

I had one person who wrote the check for only $34.83 (or whatever) and the total was $84.83, so my drawer was exactly 50 dollars short. That only happened once, thank goodness, but it taught me to definatley look at the checks!

[Sunsetsky]

I had a customer who came back into the store an hour after she came in my line. She said I didn't give her any of her debit cash back. I know I gave her the $20 that she had asked for back. My manager counted my drawer and found that I was $10 short (I had that I had the $10 in my change bag and was waiting for my quarters so my drawer was actually perfect.) Manager tells woman and she still insists that she didn't get her money. So...the managers had to watch the cameras to be sure.

Guess who ended up right?

[Lace Neil Singer]

One time I had a guy swear up and down that he gave me a $50.00 bill. He gave me a 20, and I gave him change for a 20. I was just about to call managment to come lock me off and audit my till, while looking under my drawer for any $50's. HA! No $50's! Not a one! I told the guy there is no way he gave me a $50 cuz I didn't have one!
>SNAP<
nice try, scammer!

I had something similar to that; this woman swore blind she'd given me a twenty; sadly for her, I'd just done a pickup and I had just tens and fives in the till. No twenty, therefore I knew she was trying it on. She left empty handed.

[One-Fang]

Just a quick tip I learned a decade ago that helps prevent this type of thing from happening... Count the change back to them.

Not enough.

I was purchasing lunch the other day and the lady counted back my change...

Her "..and one is ten."
Me "Twenty?" [raised eyebrow]

She had short changed me. No problem, got sorted, but just the mere counting of the change back isn't enough on it's own. If you do accidentally think the customer gave you a 10 and not a 20, you'll count back the wrong change anyway.

Number one tip from this thread - keep the note you've got separate from your till notes somehow until change is given. Of course, that's no good for the come-back customer, but it stops the immediate "no, I gave you a 20" customer. Come-backs can be directed to customer services and the till can be counted.

[Casino Jockey]

i'm lucky enough that if a customer tries that theres about a dozen cameras all pointed at various angles at the cage i work at.. no one has tried it yet

[Lehk]

Not enough.

I was purchasing lunch the other day and the lady counted back my change...

Her "..and one is ten."
Me "Twenty?" [raised eyebrow]

recv money: "out of $"
then count back change starting from the total cost

[AFpheonix]

My brain had gone on vacation for a moment the other night, apparently. A lady handed me a $20 for an $8 transaction, and I glanced at it and said "out of $10?"
She didn't say anything, but before I put it in the drawer, I gave it the old once-over to make sure it was a real bill, and at that point my brain came toddling back in time to go "hey, numbnuts! you almost gave her the wrong change!"

[gijoecam]

Not enough.

I was purchasing lunch the other day and the lady counted back my change...

Her "..and one is ten."
Me "Twenty?" [raised eyebrow]

She had short changed me. No problem, got sorted, but just the mere counting of the change back isn't enough on it's own. If you do accidentally think the customer gave you a 10 and not a 20, you'll count back the wrong change anyway.

Number one tip from this thread - keep the note you've got separate from your till notes somehow until change is given. Of course, that's no good for the come-back customer, but it stops the immediate "no, I gave you a 20" customer. Come-backs can be directed to customer services and the till can be counted.

Indeed, and I mentioned that just for that reason.

Also, I would lay their cash on the till sideways until I had counted back their change. That way they couldn't say, "I gave you a 20" when they gave me a ten. See? Here it is!

[FemmeAnime]

this one guy came through drive-thru paid for his order and left....came back through drive-thru claiming that I sorted him. Now I know I gave this guy his exact change because we just made a new store policy of dedicated till (which some people still don't follow ) and I was taking the money for the drive-thru orders because she was in the frezzer or something...It got a little busy at that point so I told him to come inside becuase I was gonna have my manager count the till. Guy comes in.....looks like skid-row. Around roofers alot so I know grunge. Now my manger informs me that it will take 20 mins to count the till, okay so the leaves and comes back. They tell me that the till was not short anywhere near what the guy said. In fact it wasn't short at all!! Mmmhhh, how'd I know? I'm still knew at this job and don't know how to explain what a dumbass he is and pass the buck to my manager...can hear the guy ranted about "where does that leave him?" Ummm, Dumbass it leaves you with the exact same amount of money you came in with!

[BusyBee]

The one time I've had someone contest how much change I had given them - aside from the few times where I was just braindead and had forgotten an extra $10 note, easily fixed and I knew it had been wrong - some guy got his movies, paid, left, came back a minute later saying he was short $50 in his wallet. He didn't know where it could've gotten to and our store was the only place he'd spent money so far (so he said). We were really busy and there's only the one till to use for change in our store, so we couldn't stop everything to count it. So I just told him, give me your name and number and if we're $50 up at the end of the night, I'll call you. He was fine with that and we were spot on with the balance that night. I think he was genuine about it... I hope he found his $50

I would lay the money given to me on the top of the cash drawer rather than putting it in right away. I would count the change and THEN add the customers to the drawer.

I'd never seen/heard this practice before. I am definitely going to have to make it a habit of my own!

[greensinestro]

Hence, the reason security cameras need to be installed over each cash register. You want to do the right thing and take people at their word, but it's difficult to do that today.

One time, about 15 years ago, I was given too much change at a local Burger King and did not realize it until much later while I was down the road. I was unable to go back and give it back to her, and I at first had told my friends about the cashier's mistake. Many of them did not think it was right that I took the money and ran, as they put it, but I was miles down the road and was not passing by it again anytime soon. I just hope I did not cost this woman her job.

[Jet]

I had someone try and do something similiar to me when I was working at my first job as a grocery cashier. Except they weren't too smart about it, they called in about 30min after they had been in the line. Woman said she handed me a 50 and I gave her change for a 20, was rather pissed and wanted my bosses to reimburse her. Well C comes up to me and asks me about it. I told him I had only gotten 2 50's all night, first one came at around 7:30 and the next one came not more than 10 minutes after. I pretty much remembered most of the transactions I took that night and went through a bunch. C said that what I said had happened matched the register and he was going to tell the lady to sod off.