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Possible Restaurant QR Code Fraud

AugieTN

AugieTN

Retired IBEW
VIP Member
Wife and I were coming back from Tennessee and we stopped at a popular Bar & Grill for something to eat. Wife ordered Potato Skins, I ordered Chicken Wings and two Pepsi. The Bill came to something like $35.. The bar was very busy and crowded. At our table it had a sign that said pay your bill by scanning the QR on your bill. So I scanned the QR code and paid the bill, It popped up that I had paid and said a email would be sent.

Here is where I made a mistake. I left the waitress a $5 tip and wrapped the Bill around the $5, and we left.

I never got an email like the QR code said.

The next day the payment at the bar shows up as $71.06

I have accounting at the bar looking into it. I think the difference between what the bill actually was ($35) and the amount charged $71.06 was taken out and pocketed in cash. If I don't get a satisfactory answer from accounting I will refer this to the local Police.
 
Strange that the amount charged was about double your bill, maybe they charged your account twice or doubled the amount somehow?

I'd also dispute it with your bank or credit card company if they don't return the additional $35.
 
Being an old geezer, I simply don't trust restaurants / bars and table top paying. I pay with cash and tip my server personally with cash. I've elaborated on my reasons in your Tipping thread. I'm way sorry your account was tapped for more than it should have and hope the establishment makes it right. Being such a popular and hassle free payment system, it should work flawlessly and be fraud free.
 
kate said:
Strange that the amount charged was about double your bill, maybe they charged your account twice or doubled the amount somehow?

I'd also dispute it with your bank or credit card company if they don't return the additional $35.
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It could be that I was charged twice for the bill by an accounting error, but an overage should show up somewhere i would think.

I've already talked to my bank, they want to see if accounting gets back to me with an answer.
 
olbriar said:
Being an old geezer, I simply don't trust restaurants / bars and table top paying. I pay with cash and tip my server personally with cash. I've elaborated on my reasons in your Tipping thread. I'm way sorry your account was tapped for more than it should have and hope the establishment makes it right. Being such a popular and hassle free payment system, it should work flawlessly and be fraud free.
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I agree with you 100%. I would normally do exactly that, but we were headed home from Tennessee and we wanted to get back on the road. The bar was extremely busy. I think they had two waitresses for about 50 people and that's why I opted for the quick payment.
 
AugieTN said:
I agree with you 100%. I would normally do exactly that, but we were headed home from Tennessee and we wanted to get back on the road. The bar was extremely busy. I think they had two waitresses for about 50 people and that's why I opted for the quick payment.
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It's designed to be easy for them and easy for the customer and should leave no room for error. I'm glad that your caught the discrepancy between bill and charge. Stealing is a crime.
 
So I got a call back from accounting. They said my bill was $35.53 and I left a $35.53 tip, so a total of $71.06. They said they would credit me $35.53.

I specifically remember looking at the bill through the QR code payment page. It had the Bill at the top, a blank line for a Tip and a total at the bottom. I specifically remember the Bill amount at the top matched the Total at the bottom. I left the tip amount blank and hit Pay..

I still think the tip was added latter. I'm still waiting on the $35.53 credit to show up.
 
This all sounds strange to me: how does it work that you can pay a bill without the electronic payment system telling you what you have paid, i.e. without the phone presenting the amount and asking for confirmation? I don't do phone payments, but any terminal I use a card at always shows me the amount I'll be charged, and nobody can change that after I've authorised it (even if authorisation is just tapping a card on the terminal). But it sounds like you just scanned a code and got a pop-up to say you'd paid: where was the authentication of the amount you had authorised (for that matter, how does scanning a QR authorise it? This goes straight into Google Pay, Samsung Pay or whatever? Do they not show you the amount and ask you to confirm?).

I'm just curious about how this works. As I say, I don't use phone payment systems, so don't know how they work, but am surprised there wasn't an explicit authorisation of the amount that was being charged.
 
Hadron said:
This all sounds strange to me: how does it work that you can pay a bill without the electronic payment system telling you what you have paid, i.e. without the phone presenting the amount and asking for confirmation? I don't do phone payments, but any terminal I use a card at always shows me the amount I'll be charged, and nobody can change that after I've authorised it (even if authorisation is just tapping a card on the terminal). But it sounds like you just scanned a code and got a pop-up to say you'd paid: where was the authentication of the amount you had authorised (for that matter, how does scanning a QR authorise it? This goes straight into Google Pay, Samsung Pay or whatever? Do they not show you the amount and ask you to confirm?).

I'm just curious about how this works. As I say, I don't use phone payment systems, so don't know how they work, but am surprised there wasn't an explicit authorisation of the amount that was being charged.
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Excellent questions.

I was expecting the email to show what I paid. You're correct, It should show what the payment was after a confirmation of the amount.

Like i said, I scanned the QR code and it went to page with the bill amount at the top, a blank line for a tip and a total at the bottom that I remember looking at that matched the bill amount at the top and hit pay. I left the Tip line blank. It went through Google Pay.

The next page came up and said the bill was paid (No amount showing) and I would receive an email of the transaction, which never came (of course I checked the Spam mail folder).
 
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AugieTN said:
So I got a call back from accounting. They said my bill was $35.53 and I left a $35.53 tip, so a total of $71.06. They said they would credit me $35.53.

I specifically remember looking at the bill through the QR code payment page. It had the Bill at the top, a blank line for a Tip and a total at the bottom. I specifically remember the Bill amount at the top matched the Total at the bottom. I left the tip amount blank and hit Pay..

I still think the tip was added latter. I'm still waiting on the $35.53 credit to show up.
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i never leave the tip amount empty. i always put whatever tip i am giving that needs to be charged.
 
also all a qr code is is a link to a website. so their website that handles the transaction could have glitched or something.

i would not call this fraud, but just an error on their part.

though there are qr code scams out there, just like with anything else check where the qr code sends you to. pay attention to the website it takes you to.
 
ocnbrze said:
Ummmm have you not read the thread?
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spam GIF
 
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