I was a bit surprised the other day when told that I could not pay by a £50 note unless I spent at least £10. Someone has suggested this requirement is against the law - is it ?
I think independant shopkeepers can do whatever they like.
Some refuse to take £50 notes at all, but I cannot for the life of me think why. It makes cashing up easier.
If you didn't like the policy you could have asked to speak to whoever was in charge, complained, and told them that in future you will take your custom elsewhere.
its not against the law, a shopkeeper could ban anyone whos ginger for example.
They dont have to sell you anything.
Its up to you if you decide to buy £10 worth of items of just walk away
The £50 Note although legal Tender is not in common usage unlike £20 note.
The Shopkeeper is not breaking the Law if he refuses to accept it as it is up to him especially if it is his own Business. He may not have the facility to check whether it is a forgery or not.
It's many months since I have seen one myself.
It's only legal tender for an amount of £50 - not for anything less. There is no concept of change in legal tender.
Not that this is a legal tender situation anyway - it's the shopkeeper stipulating his terms of business. He probably has one main reason - it uses too much of his change, which will inconvenience several customers rather than just the one he is turning away. There may be a secondary one of fear of forgeries - though £50 forgeries are rare.
As items on display in a shop are not an offer ; but an invitation to treat; there is no obligation for the shop keeper to sell you the item when you offer him money for the good; he can simply refuse without any consequence... of course, he will loose out on a sale, but as someone previously said, he can refuse to sell to someone for no reason whatsoever.