A clever little scam...

HellFireClub

This happened to a girl I know the other day but I only heard about it today...

Basically this scam is set up at the self service checkouts that you see at Tesco and Superquinn checkouts and is being pulled in a second of opportunity on an unsuspecting victim.

You hit the button to finish your shopping which will prompt you to pay, which means inserting your cash into the machine. It takes up to 20 seconds for the machine to take in your 50 Euro note (if that is what you are paying with), and first the coins are returned to you at the top of the machine, beside where you put your money in.

But a few seconds later, the notes that make up your change are dispensed at the bottom of the machine at your knee level.

So what happens is that after you take your coins in change, you are distracted by someone at the self service machine or who is standing beside you and asked a question of some sort (could be someone holding a product such as a can of beans, pretending that it won't scan and asking do you know how to code in the barcode number manually), so you being the helpful person that you are, you get engaged in their problem and turn your back on the machine, your change in notes is taken from the machine by an accomplice and the scam is so effective, that you are actually liable to completely lose track of the fact that you forgot to take the second part of your change (the chance that is returned in notes) from the bottom of the self service machine! You probably won't cop it until you are back in your car or back at home!

There's a sucker born every minute, don't let you be the next one!

joshrogan

Thanks for the idea, off to Tesco now.

starbelgrade

I hate self service checkouts.

I'd rather queue at the tills.

cosmicfart

...might try this sometime....recession and all

bassey

You'd have to be some capper to fall for that.

Use earphones.

Needler

Sometimes people just forget to pick up their change out of those things. Always look to make sure the person infront of you has taken their change there might be a nice 20e waiting for you

Standard Toaster

If you get done by this 'scam' you're a idiot.

HellFireClub

Needler wrote: »

Sometimes people just forget to pick up their change out of those things. Always look to make sure the person infront of you has taken their change there might be a nice 20e waiting for you

This is the thing, you are more likely to forget to take your notes from this checkout than any other type of payment method. The design of the self service check out is poor and the fact that the notes are dispensed at knee level is just a stupid design flaw I think...

Knex*

If one day I actually manage to be rétarded enough to put 50 quid into a machine and not wait for my change just because some numpty comes up with a perceived cunning plan (Baldwick) then good luck to him.
I'd nearly be more embarrassed than annoyed when telling friends later.

Nephew

Hopefully someone informs the Sunday World of this scam so we can warn the nation.

TheBunk1

If you get caught by this "scam", I'd question your place as a functioning member of society...

Kevin Duffy

Someone tried this on me recently. I was very clever in my response - "FÚCK OFF GRANDMA OR I'LL SMASH YOUR FACE IN WITH THE TIN OF BEANS". Ha! That showed her! She was an amateur, she didn't even have an accomplice! She just started crying and had to be helped onto her mobility scooter by a member of staff.....oh....wait....

Phill Ewinn

Send me on fiddy euro and recieve an anti-scamming cloak.

AnneElizabeth

I think people are being quite harsh. It's easy to to get distracted, I could see this happening to people who are not "idiots".

Latchy

HellFireClub wrote: »

. It takes up to 20 seconds for the machine to take in your 50 Euro note (if that is what you are paying with)

There's a sucker born every minute, don't let you be the next one!

Why would you put 50 euro in the machine if your purchases only come to less than 10 or 20 euro ? Only sucker is the person who puts a 50 euro note in the machine in the first place .

HellFireClub

Something similar happened to me once, I was filling up my car with diesel and a tourist came along and asked me directions, which I gave him as a finished filling up the car. He had a map in his car and asked me to go over to his car to mark his destination and his current position on the map so he could work it out from there.

So I came back to my car and got in and was 20 miles down the road before I realised that I had forgotten to pay for the diesel.

It happens! Just don't let it happen to you lol!

strokemyclover

Here's another tip for drug addicts: Taxi drivers usually count their notes at traffic lights. So, during those hot, drugless summer months dress up as a newspaper salesman, when you see an open driver's window, reach in and help yourself!

Brian.Clowen

Thanks for the idea. I do need more money. My pockets are not as full since I retired.

Mr. Denton

Luckily I'm unhelpful, paranoid and completely self-obsessed so this scam would probably fail on me.

That said tho, OP how big were her cans again?

Mr. Denton

Brian.Clowen wrote: »

Thanks for the idea. I do need more money. My pockets are not as full since I retired.

A good start. Tho it does mean you're going to be typecast from now on.

HellFireClub

Latchy wrote: »

Why would you put 50 euro in the machine if your purchases only come to less than 10 or 20 euro ? Only sucker is the person who puts a 50 euro note in the machine in the first place .

Ya never hear of an ATM that can only dispense 50's after all the 20's have been dispensed??? :rolleyes:

policarp

Standard Toaster wrote: »

If you get done by this 'scam' you're a idiot.

Not so sure about that.
Anybody can be distracted.
If you could recognise a conman
you would never be conned.

Ruu_Old

Great little earner!

Latchy

HellFireClub wrote: »

Ya never hear of an ATM that can only dispense 50's after all the 20's have been dispensed??? :rolleyes:

Well that's just tough **** because were I live you can draw up to £200 a day but in notes of tens of twentys...24/7 :rolleyes:

Never had to draw 50 notes out at any time unles I wanted to

Zebra3

HellFireClub wrote: »

This happened to a girl I know the other day

Yeah, right.

HellFireClub

Latchy wrote: »

Well that's just tough **** because were I live you can draw up to £200 a day but in notes of tens of twentys...24/7 :rolleyes:

Never had to draw 50 notes out at any time unles I wanted to

We can't all live on Craggy Island.

Latchy

HellFireClub wrote: »

We can't all live on Craggy Island.

But you would love to .

Sir Oxman

Happens all the time at ATMS (distraction, not an aul'wan asking you how to scan a tin of beans)

Bassboxxx

I'm presuming it's a 2 man job, one to distract and one to grab. Lets say 50 euro put in so max 45 in notes. two ways 22.50 each and ur face on camera....sounds a bit of an unworthy risk.

the groutch

HellFireClub wrote: »

This happened to a girl I know the other day but I only heard about it today...

Basically this scam is set up at the self service checkouts that you see at Tesco and Superquinn checkouts and is being pulled in a second of opportunity on an unsuspecting victim.

You hit the button to finish your shopping which will prompt you to pay, which means inserting your cash into the machine. It takes up to 20 seconds for the machine to take in your 50 Euro note (if that is what you are paying with), and first the coins are returned to you at the top of the machine, beside where you put your money in.

But a few seconds later, the notes that make up your change are dispensed at the bottom of the machine at your knee level.

So what happens is that after you take your coins in change, you are distracted by someone at the self service machine or who is standing beside you and asked a question of some sort (could be someone holding a product such as a can of beans, pretending that it won't scan and asking do you know how to code in the barcode number manually), so you being the helpful person that you are, you get engaged in their problem and turn your back on the machine, your change in notes is taken from the machine by an accomplice and the scam is so effective, that you are actually liable to completely lose track of the fact that you forgot to take the second part of your change (the chance that is returned in notes) from the bottom of the self service machine! You probably won't cop it until you are back in your car or back at home!

There's a sucker born every minute, don't let you be the next one!

let me see if I can get this thread locked

ROMA GYPSIES!!!

HellFireClub

the groutch wrote: »

let me see if I can get this thread locked

ROMA GYPSIES!!!

Nare a chance, defo PUBLIC SECTOR WORKERS on 100K a year forced into the poverty trap IMO!!! Think of the poor little public sector worker on his little work to rule, all broke on 100K a year...

Latchy

Oh my eyes ...

LaughOrDie

They've tried to do this twice on me. The first time, I noticed that a father and his child of let's just say a certian ethnicity, were hanging round way too close to where the notes come out so I didn't pack up until my notes were back in my wallet.

The second time an older lady of let's say a certian ethnicity, approached me while I was about to pay, shoving bread at me, making hand gestures for me to scan it. I politley told her that she had to wait her turn.

I felt a little bit bad, letting sterotypes and my prejudices, making me automatically think the worst. Now I realise I was right and racial profiling can only be a good thing.

ringadingding

AnneElizabeth wrote: »

I think people are being quite harsh. It's easy to to get distracted, I could see this happening to people who are not "idiots".

* sigh*
How much did they nick off you ?

Voodoomelon

HellFireClub wrote: »

Something similar happened to me once, I was filling up my car with diesel and a tourist came along and asked me directions, which I gave him as a finished filling up the car. He had a map in his car and asked me to go over to his car to mark his destination and his current position on the map so he could work it out from there.

So I came back to my car and got in and was 20 miles down the road before I realised that I had forgotten to pay for the diesel.

It happens! Just don't let it happen to you lol!

Thats a nice little scam the tourists have going on there, making locals steal petrol.

Basq

Just do what I do..

.. ask them if they need help carrying their change, then kick them in the shins.. then steal their change (after urinating on them obviously).

No fuss, no muss!

Sure I use those self service desks to offload mo shrapnel!

Kivaro

AnneElizabeth wrote: »

I think people are being quite harsh. It's easy to to get distracted, I could see this happening to people who are not "idiots".

QUICK! LOOK! Over There

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............................... easy peasy.

The Scientician

So theft is a new scam? Huh interesting.

Latchy

Originally Posted by AnneElizabeth

I think people are being quite harsh. It's easy to to get distracted, I could see this happening to people who are not "idiots".

Indeed , it could happen to anybody ,You ,Me and everybody else in this thread and it probably has .The ' it will never happen to me ' thought is just waiting to be exploited by the scammer .The key is to make it as hard for the bastards as possible ...

No charge to anybody for this advice .

AnonoBoy

So what you're saying is these people will take your money off you even though it doesn't belong to them?

Ingenious!

I must be sure to keep an eye on my money from now on if there's ragamuffins out there with scant regard for ownership of currency.

laughter189

The Scientician wrote: »

So theft is a new scam? Huh interesting.

The OP said a clever scam .- not a new one.

I hope these Supermarket check-outs are well sorted with CCTV .

Its unlikely the thief will be wearing a balaclava .

Capt'n Midnight

You probably all know about this scam but posting in case it save someone.

In Tesco whilst packing your shopping into the car you may be approached by 2 fit 18 year old eastern european girls in tight, tiny tops. They wash your screen with their tits up against the window and ask for a lift to the next Tesco as payment.

On the way they will strip down and perform oral sex on each other. One will then climb into the front and suck you off while the other attempts to steal your wallet!

I had mine stolen last Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, twice on Saturday, and again today.

laughter189

Good Lord - How can you afford to buy so many wallets ?

The Scientician

laughter189 wrote: »

The OP said a clever scam .- not a new one.

I hope these Supermarket check-outs are well sorted with CCTV .

Its unlikely the thief will be wearing a balaclava .

I'm not sure how it works to be honest. If I'm in Superquinn and I go to get my notes change from the note dispenser and it's not there I'd get onto the manager, and get my money.

Capt'n Midnight

laughter189 wrote: »

Good Lord - How can you afford to buy so many wallets ?

Tesco Value wallets :P