My Parents...NOOOOOOOOOOOO

[Greenday]

My parents and I are watching that show "What Would You Do?" The current one is on what would you do if the waiter/waitress forgot to add your bottle of wine that you drank to your bill? My parents both immediately said they wouldn't say anything. I looked at them appalled and reminded them that it would come out of the waiter's/waitress's pocket and my mom said, "Oh well, then they should have remembered to put it on the bill. That's their fault." I couldn't believe it. That's so dick.

[LibraryLady]

We actually had this happen once at a late, lamented French place.

Of course we brought the lapse to the server's attention. Guess what? From that point on they treated us like family. For about the next year we were always offered free desserts and brandy. Not every good deed goes unpunished.

[Anakah]

I guess it's the same thought stream as to if a cashier over pays you would you say anything? My answer: Hell yes, because I know what its like to over pay and have the customer walk away.

We are human there are human errors. Besides consciences, they still exist right??

[valhar2000]

Once, when I was a kid, a friend and I bought some stuff from a vendor, and the woman gave us a 200 pesetas coin, rather than a 25 pts. coin she should have given us. We went to give it back, and she let us keep it for being such "good boys". So, we got our candy and we made some money!

Yeah, sometimes nice guys finish first. Then you grow up and start dating, and you learn the harsh truth...

[Kiwi]

The only time ive ever thought that was ok was once I went to exchange money in LA (travelling back to NZ from Canada) and the guy was so rude.

I walked in and he was on the phone (personal call) and I handed him $200 canadian

he didnt speak to me, just wrote stuff on a pad and shoved it against the glass

he handed me $210 American (this was when the exchange rate should have given me about $180 American) then walked out of view... I kind of stood there for a few seconds with my jaw on the floor

then walked out the door
and nope I dont feel bad about it one bit

[persephone]

I shocked our local grocery store once because, when I got home and went through the receipt, I realized the cashier hadn't rung up the stuff I got from the deli (turkey, ham and some steaks). I had been running late to pick up Daughter so I wasn't paying much attention and didn't think about the amount until I got home and realized I had more in my wallet than I should have.

So I went back to the store with the items and the receipt, went to customer service and informed them that they'd forgotten to ring up these items and I needed to pay for them. The CS lady was definitely bugged eyed and shocked. She rang them up, but then got permission from the manager to give me a discount on them "for being so honest".

Hey, to me, even if it's the store's mistake, it's still stealing!

[Gruesome]

I'm a split personality on this issue. My father is a "too bad, so sad" kind of guy who will pocket any such mistake and feel like he came out on top. One dollar or a thousand, he'll snatch it.

But my mother is a kind soul who would return money without a thought to her own personal gain.

And yes, they are divorced. I wonder why...

So I get a on one shoulder and an on the other and they fight it out every time. Good thing my wife is all and keeps me on the right path.

[wagegoth]

Returning to the store would depend on the amount that was wrong. If it's under a couple of dollars, then I probably would not turn around and go back if I were already home. Also, there have been more than a few times when the store messed up and charged me a couple dollars too much, so I figure it evens out. Besides, I stop before I leave the store and go over the receipt to make sure everything is there.

And I would definitely tell the waiter if they forgot to charge me for something.

[Lehk]

had that happen my first time at the local game (tabletop card and board, not computer) shop. i got to the counter with about $170 or so worth of necrons, a necron codex, and some privateer press paints and tools.

total rings up to $80 so i tell the guy it cna't possibly be right, the one box of necrons is $90.

turns out the UPC for a Necron Battleforce MKII was entered into the computer as a $2 energy drink.

[LadyAndreca]

I shocked our local grocery store once because, when I got home and went through the receipt, I realized the cashier hadn't rung up the stuff I got from the deli (turkey, ham and some steaks). I had been running late to pick up Daughter so I wasn't paying much attention and didn't think about the amount until I got home and realized I had more in my wallet than I should have.

So I went back to the store with the items and the receipt, went to customer service and informed them that they'd forgotten to ring up these items and I needed to pay for them. The CS lady was definitely bugged eyed and shocked. She rang them up, but then got permission from the manager to give me a discount on them "for being so honest".

This happened once or twice while I was working at the Bullseye's service desk. Both times I gave the customer the employee discount for the items. My managers didn't care if I tweaked prices a little, as long as I wasn't being ridiculous with it--price adjustments were one of my major responsibilities, after all.

Me on the other hand...well, there's been once or twice where I've gone 'this doesn't sound right' on a receipt and paid for a couple items that didn't get rung up. But there was also the time I was given another customer's jar of mayonaise at the supermarket, and it sat on top of the fridge for months waiting for us to remember to return it...

[Gruesome]

Aw, heck. I forgot my best story on this issue. I'll just have to pad my post count...

I rewired my garage last year, and that included 140 feet of thick copper wire that was maybe $2.50 a foot. Along with some other stuff, I expected my bill to be in the $400 range. The guy gave me a total of about $150. I had a quick internal fight and the won. I asked him to recheck it, then I noticed he had his thumb over the '1' in the '140' for the length of the cable (it was on a hand-written note with the product code.)

It's not like Home Depot would go under, and likely it wouldn't even show up on any kind of audit that could nail down the mistake, so nobody would have been in trouble. But that damn inner boy scout had to pipe up and cost me another $250. Dangit.

[Imogene]

I worked for Citimortgage once a long time ago... one day, I went down to the cafeteria, and got all the way through having my lunch made, and to the check out, and only then realized I didn't have my wallet on me.
Cashier says, "No biggie, you just owe us one."
I go okay, and go sit to eat.
Next morning, I return, wallet in hand, buy my breakfast, and remind her that I owe for lunch from the prior day.
She goes bug-eyed, and starts rambling about how no one else would've reminded her.

Which reminds me of my band teacher in middle school. The first year of band, I was looking with my hands at the teacher's candle shaped like a double eighth note, and broke it on accident. Teacher gets understandably angry.
I seethe over the incident for four years. By the end of my time at the middle school, I absolutely hated this teacher, because she kept finding ways to sucker me back into Band the next year, or to make me feel really stupid for signing up for Jazz band, while playing the Tuba... and then, not being able to convert the sheet music she had (for a Trombone, if I remember correctly) to a scale more appropriate for a tuba...
Anyway, halfway through my final year in that Middle School, the teacher goes on vacation, leaving her TA to direct us. I meanwhile am wandering around a craft fair, and find a glass blowing stand. I happen to run across a single eighth note in glass, buy it, and get it wrapped up nicely. I leave it, in the box, on her desk the next day.
Teacher returns, finds the present, and asks the gathered class who left it for her. I confess, she asks why I did it.
"I broke your candle way back in sixth grade... and it's been gnawing at me."
She goes entirely blank. "I'd forgotten about that candle..."
I have a long memory for when I screw up, unfortunately...

[Dips]

"I broke your candle way back in sixth grade... and it's been gnawing at me."
She goes entirely blank. "I'd forgotten about that candle..."
I have a long memory for when I screw up, unfortunately...

Welcome to my world. Whenever I am confronted with something like the situation in the OP, I always have to ask myself...

"How much is my conscience going to make me pay for that bottle of wine and for how long?"

I know the answer well enough to realize I'd better speak up and pony up. It's much cheaper.