Shoppers outraged after being charged 'bulls**t' surcharge at a local store
- Replies 22
As summer rolls around, many of us are planning BBQs and outdoor picnics with family and friends. And what's a summertime get-together without a round or two of ice-cold drinks to cool down?
Unfortunately, one Sydney shopper's trip to a local store turned into a mildly infuriating experience.
The customer shared their frustration on the popular social media site Reddit, after discovering that the store they'd visited had slapped on an additional fee just for buying a cold beverage!
‘Surcharge for cold drinks, I guess that’s a new one (at least for me),’ they captioned and attached the image of the store’s drinks fridge below:
The Citi Super Asian Supermarket on George Street in Sydney’s CBD added a 20c surcharge for cold drinks under 1.5 litres, and 50c extra for drinks over 1.5 litres.
Social media users rushed to the original poster’s comments section, and while many agreed that slapping on a surcharge was ‘outrageous’, some said it wasn’t a new thing for shops to do.
‘This is utter bull***t,’ said one, while another felt ‘disgusted’ by the act.
A third wrote: ‘What’s next? Salad tossing fee? Sandwich construction fee? I wonder if stores will soon start a cover-charge system. You pay a fee to get in and get a stamp so you can return for free.’
‘Maybe if they had doors on their fridges, the electricity bill wouldn’t be so high they had to extort their customers,’ suggested another.
Many revealed that bigger shops, such as Coles and Woolworths, also do this but don’t advertise it.
‘Coles and Woolies used to do this 20 years ago,’ someone claimed. Another person shared that these retailers still do this today. ‘Big cold coke is way more expensive than one from the shelf,’ they added.
Someone asked why the store would feel the need to advertise the surcharge instead of just ‘pricing it in if it’s a real cost’. One person replied: ‘Unlike Coles and Woolies who don't stock the same size drink both refrigerated and unrefrigerated, this store sells the same drinks at both cold and at room temperature.’
While another explained that many store items have a ‘recommended retail price’ on the packaging, so shops can’t take advantage and charge really high prices without looking dishonest. This may be the reason why the store put up the sign.
A few of the comments said that the surcharge was ‘nothing to be angry about’.
‘Am I the only one who thinks it’s kind of reasonable? I mean, at the end of the day they have to pay for the fridge, floor space, power, etc.’
Another felt that the store was being honest to their customers by explaining the cost of the surcharge.
What are your thoughts on this, members? Do you think the surcharge is reasonable or not? Let us know in the comments!
Unfortunately, one Sydney shopper's trip to a local store turned into a mildly infuriating experience.
The customer shared their frustration on the popular social media site Reddit, after discovering that the store they'd visited had slapped on an additional fee just for buying a cold beverage!
‘Surcharge for cold drinks, I guess that’s a new one (at least for me),’ they captioned and attached the image of the store’s drinks fridge below:
The bright green sign can be seen hanging at the top of the fridge. Credit: Reddit
The Citi Super Asian Supermarket on George Street in Sydney’s CBD added a 20c surcharge for cold drinks under 1.5 litres, and 50c extra for drinks over 1.5 litres.
Social media users rushed to the original poster’s comments section, and while many agreed that slapping on a surcharge was ‘outrageous’, some said it wasn’t a new thing for shops to do.
‘This is utter bull***t,’ said one, while another felt ‘disgusted’ by the act.
A third wrote: ‘What’s next? Salad tossing fee? Sandwich construction fee? I wonder if stores will soon start a cover-charge system. You pay a fee to get in and get a stamp so you can return for free.’
‘Maybe if they had doors on their fridges, the electricity bill wouldn’t be so high they had to extort their customers,’ suggested another.
Other supermarkets allegedly also charge higher for refrigerated drinks. Credit: Pixabay/Pexels
‘Coles and Woolies used to do this 20 years ago,’ someone claimed. Another person shared that these retailers still do this today. ‘Big cold coke is way more expensive than one from the shelf,’ they added.
Someone asked why the store would feel the need to advertise the surcharge instead of just ‘pricing it in if it’s a real cost’. One person replied: ‘Unlike Coles and Woolies who don't stock the same size drink both refrigerated and unrefrigerated, this store sells the same drinks at both cold and at room temperature.’
While another explained that many store items have a ‘recommended retail price’ on the packaging, so shops can’t take advantage and charge really high prices without looking dishonest. This may be the reason why the store put up the sign.
A few of the comments said that the surcharge was ‘nothing to be angry about’.
‘Am I the only one who thinks it’s kind of reasonable? I mean, at the end of the day they have to pay for the fridge, floor space, power, etc.’
Another felt that the store was being honest to their customers by explaining the cost of the surcharge.
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