Posted by
salepepe
17 yrs ago
Firstly, all of what you're going to read below has probably resulted fr sheer stupidity and carelessness on my part.
I went to my regular salon for a facial yesterday and upon completion went up to the cashier to pay. The bill was $250 and I paid with a $1000 bill. Was distracted by something and stuffed the change into my wallet but not before giving the lady a tip.
Went home immediately after and realised last nite that rather than giving me back $750 in change, I was instead given 2x$200, 2x$20 and 1x$10 = 250. The notes were bulky and I have been to this lady a few times so I didn't check the amount....as I said bef, sheer stupidity on my part!
Was completely shocked bec I was extremely confident that I gave her a $1,000 note, only bec I didnt have any smaller notes other than a $20 in my wallet.
Went to the salon to inform them and the boss called the lady who had called in sick today. She said I paid her with a $500 note which was completely untrue. I insisted on checking the CCTV but it was not clear enough to prove that I did indeed pay with a 1,000 note.
I'm very frustrated and am planning to make a police report tomorrow as I do not think this is a trivial matter. Going for a facial once in 4 months is a luxury for me and to have 500 taken like that is just a complete no-no.
I was also wondering if there was some sort of "CSI" technology to enlarge the image of the money I was remitting to use as proof.
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good advice about counting change. Good companies have trained their staff to announce how much they have accepted from you after you hand them money, so if that's incorrect you can protest immediately.
If you have to patronize places that don't do that, or can't cos it's too noisy (i.e. in bars), then the largest note you should hand over is a $100. At worst you lose money in the tens, not hundreds.
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upon reading it firstly i though you received back your money with a 500 note too and you unintentionally (stupidly) gave that as the tip (why give tips?, silly american practice). now i wonder whether you actually did give a 500 note originally because you sound somewhat of an air head that day (as you say distracted etc etc) but maybe, she did short change you (hence why she was sick the next day). note that it is becoming very common now, again, because of downturn, especially in bars! bloody greed is taking over hk again. prices have risen in supermarkets, bars etc. bloody awful and disgusting practices are becoming more common everyday. bloody greed!
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Birdman,
I gave a $30 tip, not a $500 tip (which would be really stupid!). Being distracted does not make one an airhead.
I assume you had to read my post twice (or more) in order to understand the content. I mentioned I was highly confident that I gave her a $1,000 bec I had that and a $20 note in my wallet. I did not go anywhere before the visit to the salon and after.
Yes, I do accept blame for what happened as I am usually very cautious and always count my change. The one time I did not, this had to happen. However, I do not want to let it go and I will go all the way to ensure this does not happen to any other patron of this salon.
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The salon finally called me this morning at 9am to inform me that upon further investigation they realised that they did indeed make a mistake in shortchanging me and apologised profusely. I will be going in later to get back my $500.
I have however, learnt my lesson and will be religiously checking my change from now on!
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that's great news - it seems like a honest mistake that you alerted them to, and they discovered to be true while doing the week's accounting. Greed is not taking over HK.
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FKKC
17 yrs ago
What a relief for you......have learned from your experience and would be careful in future dealings regarding paying any bill with a $1,000 note.
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Glad you got your money back, Salepepe. A good lesson for all of us. By the way, Birdbrain, while tipping in restaurants is not customary in this part of the world, tipping at beauty salons is mandatory and expected.
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however much some might expect it from Americans, i'm not sure about the mandatory aspect of tipping.... in HKG....
Of course tipping anyone because you "have to" and not because you enjoyed the service is really S.T.U.P.I.D, in my opinion....
Will launch a new thread about it, as i'd like to get your insights, as practices seems to widely differ according to your original country... and foreign people tends to replicate their original country's practice in HKG....
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I used to waitress in Canada and the states. we expected a 10-15% tip for adequate service and a 15-20% tip for good service. Some waitresses or waiters would refuse to serve cheap people. Why? Because the tips are supposed to encourage the staff to work and are considered a part of the cost of going out to eat, get your hair done, etc. Restaurant sgenerally don't make ANY money off the sale of food, and only make it off drinks. We want restaurants to stay in buisiness and the staff to be helpful, so they work for tips. otherwise, they'd work in a store. waiters and waitresses in north america really don't earn much money!
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'o_o'
17 yrs ago
Having lived in Bkk for 4 years, I got into the habit of tipping, esp the ladies at salons. They were honestly such sweet ladies and I knew for a fact they were earning the barest most basic minimum of salaries. Yet, they happily went about their jobs and did such a good one at that.
I was happy to tip them as I was getting more than my money's worth and I knew they depended a lot on tips from their customers.
I will not, however, tip if I have been accorded bad service. And btw, I am not an American.
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