debit card mistake?

[Lewis10]

I recenly used my card to pay for some drinks in a well known chain of hotel/bars. Tha total amount was �8.32. When my statement came through the total debited was �80.32. I called my bank who are investigating but they said if I had signed the slip for �80.32 without realising then there is nothing they can do. Is this right? surely the bar's till would have been �71.68 up at the end of the evening and they would have till receipts to show the mistake?

[stevie21]

Signing the slip means that you're entering into a binding agreement so if the hotel/bar is stubborn enough they'll keep the money. Do you have *any* debit card receipt? It'll say "Please debit my account with the amount below" or something similar.

If they have any sense of customer service they'll refund the difference as they're well able to check the actual food/drinks put through the till and see that they only cost �8.32. Probably quite time consuming for them to check but still possible.

[twiglet4frog]

u could technically go to court and order the chain to reveal there till receipt and debit card receipts as they have to keep all accounts for the next 5 years i believe it is, but that is a long hassle, i think the best thing is to talk to the chain manager taking a bank statement and hope he is understanding, and if he isnt then call it a write off and look at it as a experience where u know now to check everything u sign for. better to have a �80 mistake now than �800 mistake on a sofa or something at a later date!

[stevie21]

How could you technically go to court if you have signed an agreement which states in black and white
"Please debit my account the sum of �80.32" ?

I know it's an honest mistake and it'd be obviously and grossly unfair to be so out of pocket but there isn't a "Aww, that's a shame legal act of 1978".
As far as I know, and unless someone with more specialist knowledge can confirm otherwise, the company are bound by nothing more than a sense of conscience to refund the difference. They may be able to prove by looking at their own records that you should only have been charged 8 quid but none of that changes the bit of paper with your signature on it.

I'm sure I've seen something like this on Watchdog yonks ago. Yep, that's right. I take my legal advice from Anne Robinson ;-)

[acw]

Stevie is TOTALLY correct.  It's totally simple contract law.  Sadly, if you did sign the slip to say �80.72 then it would be VERY tricky to get out of it.  Moreover, a bill coming in with an extra naught implies that it's a more basic till, therefore less likely to produce itemised receipts.

Moreover, Lewis' theory that the till would be �71.68 up at the end of the night just doesn't work - sorry.  Tills NEVER balance.  Bar staff make mistakes (we're under a lot of pressure), money may even go missing:  at the end of the night, anything about �100 either way will be OK'd by most supervisors.  There is no chance that the til would be up by exactly �71.68. 

Even if it by some miracle was, it really is only conscience that binds them to give you the money back.  Sorry to confirm bad news.