A Pound Foolish"
Or so they said. But as widely exhibited in Dutch's culture involving moneyed transactions, the reverse is more likely true.
My introduction to this cultural phenomenon took place as soon as we arrived on Dutch flatlands. We were stocking up on grocery and being quite slow in adjusting to a new place, I was asked by my husband to line up and pay at the cashier.
Whether I like it or not, I have to acclimatize to my new surroundings sooner or later. So, I summoned the courage to deal with foreign-looking people - let me paraphrase that, gigantic, scary foreign-looking people - by engaging in a harmless act of purchasing perishable goods.
When my turn came, I waited eagerly for the transaction to finish. The cashier uttered the amount in Dutch but I kept looking at the total shown on the till instead. So, it's Euro11.58. Unaccustomed to the Euro notes, I doublechecked my money before handing it over. Euro12 - a crisp Euro10 note and Euro2 in coin.
She gave me the change together with the 'bon'(or receipt) and I immediately counted the change. It was ONLY 40 cents. Where's the rest of the money???
I felt cheated out of my money and demanded an explanation. Actually, it didn't sound as harsh as that but I inquired rather incoherently in English as to the whereabouts of my two sought-after nickels. The cashier's forehead furrowed in genuine bewilderment. She didn't understand what the fuss I was making. And glancing shyly at the long line forming behind me, I decided to give it a rest. Perhaps it's a one-off thing. Turn out, I was grossly mistaken....
In Malaysia, the places which usually practice this kind of blatant disregard of returning exact change are fast-food chains. When the food service person said while extending the change into my open palm "Mintak maaflah Kak, duit satu sen kitorang dah habis" ("Sorry madam, we have run out of one cents"), I would invariably reply in a sarcastic tone, "Kalau macam ni selalu, kayalah korang! ("If this is always the case, you guys will end up rich!").
It's not a matter of me being stingy about a measly one cent - as others might be quick to judge - but it's a matter of principle. Why do you charge an odd-number price on your merchandise or in this case, food, if you are not able to give back an odd-number change to your customers? It defeats the purpose. Why don't you just round down or up (more likely scenario to account for service tax) the price? At the expense of our loose change, why do we have to fatten the coffers of an already filthy-rich food establishment?!
If I were to carp at the hapless cashier for this customer disservice, the manager in charge would come to the rescue and gave me a change higher than the one quoted. Naturally, not before giving me a sourface for my disgruntled public display. :)
Back to Holland, I observe this widespread and prevalent practice of non-exact change almost everywhere in the polder-rich country. That is, when the transactions are odd-number-ed. And not a single soul gripes about their wealth frittering away by the greedy, capitalist Big Brother. Unless of course, you're a clueless emigrant or tourist in the Netherlands...
Don't get me wrong, one cents are currently being circulated in the country but the Dutch seem, at least to me, to deny its existence as a legal tender. I however realise this 'system' works for the residents because it's culturally acceptable and more importantly, there's, literally, a sort of 'checks and balances' to this peculiar custom. The total odd-number amount is either round down or round up according to its nearest 5-cent. Let's say, your transaction comes to Euro4.53, you can easily give Euro4.50 to the cashier without being harassed for the remaining 3 cents. Conversely, if the traded goods amounted to Euro11.58, you are expected to shell out Euro11.60.
Despite the inartificial balancing acts, I am still peeved by another type of price fixing - the ones that end with .99. When buying goods like clothing items and DVDs, we incidentally must pay an extra 1 cent owing solely to this non-exact change rule. Perhaps, is it because these products are deemed as 'controlled merchandise'?
So in a country that 'foolishly' (to borrow from my abovementioned adage) dispense with its one cents, one only has 'one' option in this pecuniary matter. Join the Dutch club! And a word of advice, always, always make sure you pay the lower of the stated odd-number total. For that purpose, always have a pocket calculator on your person. ;)
note: Comics taken from here.
My introduction to this cultural phenomenon took place as soon as we arrived on Dutch flatlands. We were stocking up on grocery and being quite slow in adjusting to a new place, I was asked by my husband to line up and pay at the cashier.
Whether I like it or not, I have to acclimatize to my new surroundings sooner or later. So, I summoned the courage to deal with foreign-looking people - let me paraphrase that, gigantic, scary foreign-looking people - by engaging in a harmless act of purchasing perishable goods.
When my turn came, I waited eagerly for the transaction to finish. The cashier uttered the amount in Dutch but I kept looking at the total shown on the till instead. So, it's Euro11.58. Unaccustomed to the Euro notes, I doublechecked my money before handing it over. Euro12 - a crisp Euro10 note and Euro2 in coin.
She gave me the change together with the 'bon'(or receipt) and I immediately counted the change. It was ONLY 40 cents. Where's the rest of the money???
I felt cheated out of my money and demanded an explanation. Actually, it didn't sound as harsh as that but I inquired rather incoherently in English as to the whereabouts of my two sought-after nickels. The cashier's forehead furrowed in genuine bewilderment. She didn't understand what the fuss I was making. And glancing shyly at the long line forming behind me, I decided to give it a rest. Perhaps it's a one-off thing. Turn out, I was grossly mistaken....
In Malaysia, the places which usually practice this kind of blatant disregard of returning exact change are fast-food chains. When the food service person said while extending the change into my open palm "Mintak maaflah Kak, duit satu sen kitorang dah habis" ("Sorry madam, we have run out of one cents"), I would invariably reply in a sarcastic tone, "Kalau macam ni selalu, kayalah korang! ("If this is always the case, you guys will end up rich!").
It's not a matter of me being stingy about a measly one cent - as others might be quick to judge - but it's a matter of principle. Why do you charge an odd-number price on your merchandise or in this case, food, if you are not able to give back an odd-number change to your customers? It defeats the purpose. Why don't you just round down or up (more likely scenario to account for service tax) the price? At the expense of our loose change, why do we have to fatten the coffers of an already filthy-rich food establishment?!
If I were to carp at the hapless cashier for this customer disservice, the manager in charge would come to the rescue and gave me a change higher than the one quoted. Naturally, not before giving me a sourface for my disgruntled public display. :)
Back to Holland, I observe this widespread and prevalent practice of non-exact change almost everywhere in the polder-rich country. That is, when the transactions are odd-number-ed. And not a single soul gripes about their wealth frittering away by the greedy, capitalist Big Brother. Unless of course, you're a clueless emigrant or tourist in the Netherlands...
Don't get me wrong, one cents are currently being circulated in the country but the Dutch seem, at least to me, to deny its existence as a legal tender. I however realise this 'system' works for the residents because it's culturally acceptable and more importantly, there's, literally, a sort of 'checks and balances' to this peculiar custom. The total odd-number amount is either round down or round up according to its nearest 5-cent. Let's say, your transaction comes to Euro4.53, you can easily give Euro4.50 to the cashier without being harassed for the remaining 3 cents. Conversely, if the traded goods amounted to Euro11.58, you are expected to shell out Euro11.60.
Despite the inartificial balancing acts, I am still peeved by another type of price fixing - the ones that end with .99. When buying goods like clothing items and DVDs, we incidentally must pay an extra 1 cent owing solely to this non-exact change rule. Perhaps, is it because these products are deemed as 'controlled merchandise'?
So in a country that 'foolishly' (to borrow from my abovementioned adage) dispense with its one cents, one only has 'one' option in this pecuniary matter. Join the Dutch club! And a word of advice, always, always make sure you pay the lower of the stated odd-number total. For that purpose, always have a pocket calculator on your person. ;)
note: Comics taken from here.
7 comments:
oh finally! someone voices out. it's the same here in Australia. worse here, they dont even HAVE 1 cent coins. very irritating if u ask me. I feel cheated. It's not about being stingy.
1 or 2 cents multiplied by God knows how many times we purchase an item/s can come to a lot of money in the long run!
i pay using my bank/debit card. that way i only pay for the exact value.
the rich are always trying to make themselves richer
by the way.. the $_.99 price is purely psychological. $4.99 is really $5.. but it looks cheaper because we see the number 4. hehe learnt it in business studies. ;)
Aliya, you learnt that in business studies? And I'm supposed to be a business major ;)
My husband will usually employ this failsafe method when confronted by a cashier with the lack of 1 cent change in his/her till.
"Kalau awak tak bagi, saya tak halalkan duit tu" or "Duit yang awak ambik tu, saya tak halalkan"
Something like that and the cashier will automatically scuttle for 1 cents from his/her cashier peers. Hahaha!
The 1 cents in the Netherlands are becoming obsolete, from the looks of it. I once gave 1 cents in a supermarket and the check-out counter returned them back to me!
Hi Theta,
Thanks for your visit the other day.
Isn't this such a nuisance indeed? These coppers thingy. Yeah I agree it is a matter of principle.
Sometimes my hubby would laugh his head off and say..hmm..at the hotels and restaurants, one would tip the service staff dollars and here someone's miffed with the coppers. I told him it is my prerogative when to give..ha ha.
I'm with you, it is still a matter of principle.
Btw, Happy International Women's Day.
well, didn't you learn it in business studies? bab marketing? hehehe
haha i only did business studies at an international baccalaureate level. it's a miracle i even remembered such a point.
haha nice move! but do non Malays even care if it's halal or not?
Hi Ruby,
Thanks for swinging by my 'place'.
It's a travesty to con people out of their change on pretext that the place - swanky or otherwise - has run out of so-called coppers.
I'm glad we're on the same page with regard to this matter =)
Marketing course eh? Sans coffee, I must've dozed off when the prof was on this topic. Hehe. And marketing is not my forte, I'm afraid... :)
On the halal point, sadly to say, our encounters with respect to being short-changed always involve Malays. :(
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