ETHICS IN FAILURE TO GIVE EXACT CHANGE TO CUSTOMERS
It is part of my routine that I go to the local grocery store monthly to buy personal stuffs and toiletries. More often than not, cash transactions in most local stores are giving candies in exchange for their loose change. Although some of the establishments offer their apology for having no coins for their loose change, they still give candy for an insignificant or small changes.
This is actually a deprivation of consumer rights and they are likely to be deceptive and unfair to them. According to Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), this transaction is not like legal tender, it means that it is not a form of medium of payment recognized by our legal system. Only coins or currency issued by the Bangko Central ng Pilipinas (BSP) are legal tender and candies are not.
Any establishment cannot force ay customer to accept candies as change. This act is actually considered to be a deception of consumers because they are forced to enter a sales transaction through cover up and fraudulent manipulation. Although according to the Republic Act 7394 or Consumer Act of the Philippines, this transaction will be allowed only if there is consent of the consumer because this is also considered to be contract of sale. However, consumer can always demand for their actual change.
But if we’re going to analyze the intentions of the management, we cannot help but think that most of them just give us alibi for us to enter into such sale transaction. One grocery store argued that there is a shortage of store, but according to DTI and BSP, this is not an excuse for giving candies instead of coins for change.
This issue is a clear malpractice of trade and must be stopped. If not illegal, this immoral and candies have values and therefore considered as a force purchase. It is advised that grocery stores who offered candies for loose change may be reported to DTI and BSP.