Undercharged Due to Cashier’s Error
Question
I just came home from a produce store and realized they undercharged me by a substantial amount due to a cashier’s error. Normally in this situation, I would go back and pay the difference. But none of the people who work there, including the owners, speak my language. Communicating with them to explain the situation is impossible. Knowing exactly how much I owe is also difficult because the produce is mostly sold by weight. How should I handle this?
Answers
If the store is not owned by Jews, there is no Halachic obligation to offer to repay whatever you were not charged for. If the store is owned by Jews, you have an obligation to try to sort it out. However, even if the store is not owned by Jews, and there is no Halachic obligation, I do think that it is correct to contact the management and ask them what to do.
As opposed to the cashiers (even assuming that you could successfully communicate with them), the management are the only ones who have the authority to waive the money. Why am I suggesting that you do something that you are not Halachically obliged to do? Because you have a wonderful opportunity to sanctify Hashem’s Name here in this world by introducing yourself to the management as an Orthodox Jew who is troubled by what happened. My assumption is that they will tell you to forget it, but I also hope that they will be inspired by your honesty and will, hopefully, look at Jews in a more positive light.
Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team