Pennies from heaven (Dunnes Stores)

K

KOW

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Have used the self service check out in Dunnes in Gorey a number of times in the past week or so. Keep getting one cents in the change. Thought they were gone.
Penny for your thoughts on this serious issue.
 
The rounding is voluntary, Dunnes weren't participating at the start, not sure if they ever did.
 
Ahhhh!!!!!!! - Yes, I keep getting coppers in the change in Dunnes too. But, yesterday evening . . . . I noticed a lady buying flowers for St-Valentine's Day and I think she put every one cent and two cent coin in Christendom into the machine and I reckon the coins must be inflicted on the next male of the species who arrives at the automated check-out.

Idea:- I have no doubt Dunnes pay a fortune in acquiring one cent, two cent, five cent coins from the bank in bulk. What about a discount for somebody inserting say more than €10.00 in copper?
 
Rounding is voluntary but not every store realizes this. Personally I hate it, to me it is just a tax on purchases as I find some shops apply it when it suits them but not when it doesn't. I've queried it in a couple of shops and been told "it's the law" . My penny jar is filling a lot slower these days as a result
 
If the shops are so bothered about their volumes of small change, there's no law that I am aware of that would stop them pricing everything in 5c increments and get rid of the .99 nonsense!
 
Leper said:
.... Idea:- I have no doubt Dunnes pay a fortune in acquiring one cent, two cent, five cent coins from the bank in bulk. What about a discount for somebody inserting say more than €10.00 in copper?
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A nice thought, but I've seen machines in supermarkets that count your change and convert it to paper charging 12% commisssion (complete rip off !), so the chances of getting a discount for paying in small change are very slim I'm afraid.
 
MrEarl said:
A nice thought, but I've seen machines in supermarkets that count your change and convert it to paper charging 12% commisssion (complete rip off !), so the chances of getting a discount for paying in small change are very slim I'm afraid.
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Initially I thought similarly, but then faced with a large jar of 1c, 2c 5c and 10c all mixed up, the choice was to get money bags, spend about 2 hours sorting and counting, bring to the bank and exchange or pour the whole jar into a machine, voucher dispensed in about 3 minutes and go to desk to cash it for just over €100.

Commission was just over €13 - best €13 ever spent.
 
peemac said:
Initially I thought similarly, but then faced with a large jar of 1c, 2c 5c and 10c all mixed up, the choice was to get money bags, spend about 2 hours sorting and counting, bring to the bank and exchange or pour the whole jar into a machine, voucher dispensed in about 3 minutes and go to desk to cash it for just over €100. Commission was just over €13 - best €13 ever spent.
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Well, you could have worked out the value of all your coins much faster by just seperating them into the different units, then weighing one and subsequently weighing all of the same value etc. Obviously that would have been a lot faster than pretending to be the Count from Sesame Street for an afternoon ;)

Personally, I am all for saving time and don't mind spending if it is worth my while, but 12-13% for a machine to count your coins is a rip off.
 
Leper said:
Idea:- I have no doubt Dunnes pay a fortune in acquiring one cent, two cent, five cent coins from the bank in bulk. What about a discount for somebody inserting say more than €10.00 in copper?
Click to expand...

It is about 3-5% for small retailers. A massive company such as Dunnes would be in a position to negotiate a cheaper fee for coins.

I worked in a store and coining a bag of coins from a customer wastes a lot of time. It makes more sense for a retailer to pay 3% from a bank for 1/2cents than counting to save a tiny fee. It is false economy.
 
I don't know if dunnes participated or not but as the rounding is voluntary I assume the self-service checkouts have to give the one cent change, the machine can't ask you whether or not you want your change rounded without being programmed to do so.
 
Tesco's self service machines round totals - there isn't an option to ask for exact change.
 
MrEarl said:
Well, you could have worked out the value of all your coins much faster by just seperating them into the different units, then weighing one and subsequently weighing all of the same value etc. Obviously that would have been a lot faster than pretending to be the Count from Sesame Street for an afternoon ;)

Personally, I am all for saving time and don't mind spending if it is worth my while, but 12-13% for a machine to count your coins is a rip off.
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Even with the best will in the world, that would be excruciatingly boring and banks would want them in bags - the hassle just would not be worth it.

I did ensure all €1, €2 and 50c coins were taken out :)
 
Get the kids to count the coins, it's good for them.

My husband collects coins, every week I put them in my purse and do self service shopping, I pay with all coins below 10 cent first, then use my bank card for the balance.

One time having discovered the coin counting machine I brought a load of them to Ireland but my brother told me about the 13% commission so no way was I paying that.
 
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