Empty Promises

I was at a store the other day that had the following sign next to the register: "If you request a receipt and you are not given one, your purchase is free"

I don't know where the whole idea of getting something for free if no receipt is provided came from, but I have never seen one where you are required to ask for the receipt. I can see this resulting in very few free products. I think you only win if:

1. The receipt printer is either broken or out of paper - but I suppose they could always handwrite a receipt; or

2. You have an exceptionally beligerent employee. The type of guy who, when asked for a receipt, looks you square in the eyes and tells you to go to hell. It would be entertaining to see though. I also tend to think that the type of guy who refuses to hand over a receipt, even when specifically requested, is probably not too eager to process a refund.

But, they get to put up the sign. I also tend to believe that whether a business is particularly dilligent in handing out receipts has little effect on whether a customer shops there or not. The only thing that would possibly deter me was if a store adopted an absolute zero tolerance policy on providing receipts and ruled with an iron fist, or if they charged extra for a receipt.

In my experience, you almost always see this at fast food places. Maybe it is to ensure that employees are ringing in the sale? But, if you were going to give someone free food, wouldn't you not ring it in? Someone getting the food for free is not going to complain about not receiving a receipt. Well - I googled it, apparently it is to stop employees from pocketing the money. That makes a lot more sense. But, only for stores that provide the receipt without the customer needing to ask. The 100% receipt policy basically means that the first time an employee pockets the money, the customer will say something since they want free stuff. But, if you are required to ask for it first, the thieving employee gets a chance to change course. It is win win for the thief. He can steal from the majority of people who don't care about getting a receipt. He only has to be honest with those who do ask for receipts, which is the minority in my opinion.

These are the puzzles that keep me guessing. At least it is not another biking story. Although, I did attend a bike expo over the weekend where I got to ride a super fancy bike. It was a lot of fun.