Angel Supermart fixes $1397 vs $13.97 overcharge, staff pays for surcharge

Even as Carousell and Shopee scams abound in Singapore, we can still believe in honest businesses who don’t take advantage of consumers, and seek to fix mistakes even when no one calls them out.

Angel Supermart, a grocery store in Ang Mo Kio, used social media to track down a customer they accidentally overcharged for a previous transaction. Upon checking their transactions, they found that they had charged the customer ten one hundred times more than the actual amount!

According to a Facebook post that featured the erroneous transaction, the customer was charged $1397 when his bill should have only been $13.97. The customer did not realize he was overcharged either, and would have probably only known when his credit card statement would arrive.

How did they find the customer?

Angel Supermart said that the erroneous charge happened in the wee hours of May 31, in their Ang Mo Kio branch. The cashier had reportedly failed to key in the decimal point which resulted in the exorbitant charge.

The management of the minimart chain then put out a Facebook post calling for the customer to return to the specific branch where it happened–so they could correct the mistake.

The post revealed the details of the transaction and phone number for the concerned customer to call. They were quite apologetic and transparent with their post.

After a few days, the customer went back and resolved the issue.

According to the post, the customer took the photos and even included a group selfie with the management. The customer was very thankful and accepted their apology. The minimart chain said that they were going to offer the customer snacks, drinks, and a lifetime VIP membership.

Some VIP perks include shopping at their branches during special sales at a much earlier time than their regular customers.

What happened to the staff that made the mistake?

According to a comment on the same post, the management said that the staff who made the mistake has been reprimanded, and the surcharges for the transaction would be taken out of his wages.

The same comment, however, said that they provided a nurturing environment for their staff and that the latter were encouraged to learn from mistakes.

Netizens praise company for honesty amid pandemic

While a lot of people in Singapore are hurting and suffering during Circuit Breaker, it was indeed great to see some companies act responsibly. In true Singaporean fashion, though, criticism of all sides was inevitable, and you’d no doubt hear Auntie and Uncle voices in your head berating you for being so careless.

Some commenters on their post said that they appreciated honesty of the company and that they would definitely buy their essentials more often.

Other commenters said that aside from the staff, the customer should have also checked on the charge slip and the terminal as to how much they were being charged. This could have become quite a saga if Angel Supermart wasn’t such a good guy and made the reversal transaction difficult.

Customers should use this incident to be reminded of being vigilant when using cashless transactions, especially as the current pandemic encourages contactless payments instead of cash. It’s also understandable that the stress of COVID-19 may make us very aware of our health and safety, but forget about other things.

Header image from Angel Supermart Facebook account