Have you ever cheated the system? And how.

Hangballlouie

dermo88 wrote: »

One of the best ones came in 1990 with the introduction of the Pound coin. Vending machines were incorrectly calibrated. One evening, while comparing a past Irish coin set (Pre decimal) and (Decimal), I looked.

"Oh hello nurse....." and the lamplight lights in my mind.

The pre decimal penny and pound.....

I was 14....and thought.

"I can go to the coin dealer and get 12 of these old pennies for a pound"

Lets try.....something new. Went to get cigarettes which were 2.05 a pack of twenty back then, and tested it on a vending machine

"Clunk clunk, drop"

Out came 20 John Player Blue.

"RESULT"

So it was a case of my friends and I heading down to Mother Redcaps market and cleaning the old coin dealers out of pre decimal pennies.

Over the next month, before they realised, we must have turned 12 quid each into 200 quid with the cigarette scam. There was also my favourite target.....Dublin Bus.....using the coins painted with silver paint. The drivers were too 'rushed' to notice, and for the childs fare of 30 pence, we were getting back 70 pence. Several times a day in July 1990, the massive 'laundering' scheme built up stacks of coins with Italia 90 drawing to a close. Then it was back to Mother Redcaps, Georges Street Arcade, Grafton....to repeat the process.

Mum thought I was on the game when she saw 3 x 20 notes in the room....and it was going to take explaining. Even on a paper round, it was too much cash back then to get away with, since it was normally put in the Post office if I had over 20 quid at once and she knew how much I had.....prevented me drinking, smoking.....or generally being too bad. AND.....I was notoriously frugal back then. I would'nt spend Christmas.

Mum has also found the silver paint and the pennies under preparation, and she was not buying the excuse that this was for "an art competition". Especially with the article about the compatibility problem in the Evening Herald. And much as I tried to lie, I could'nt lie for nuts.

I explained.

She was bemused...... "No wonder you were so willing to cycle out and get cigarettes for Dad and I"

"How much did you make from the scam"

"About 60 quid"

Which was promptly confiscated and handled over to my Grandfather who helped in St Vincent De Paul, and no pocket money for 3 months either. By mid August, the Central Bank of Ireland was alerted, along with the vendors, so it was game over.

So it was a Robin Hood of sorts......even if it was against my will.

She rescinded in January on a good school report (came top of the class) and backdated the pocket money, as I was extra goodie two shoes. Cue the return of 3 crisp blue 20 pound notes.....SWEET.

Meanwhile....lying underneath the bed lay an enormous stash of shrapnel from Dublin Bus.

And one lesson I did learn.......be economical with the truth.

leggo

plasteritup wrote: »

could he not have got one of his mates to get his roll,cmon man this is a bit far fetched.

Haha, it's true, believe it or not if you want. Why's it so hard to believe a guy got barred for theft?

If you're buying the pick 'n' mix salad (which is what he was caught trying to sneak on the cheap), I dunno, I wouldn't have my mates picking out a buncha random ****e for me.

And, as a grown man who presumably wasn't a scumbag (he wasn't...he was an ordinary Joe Soap who thought he was beating the system like the OP...), I'd imagine he found it quite embarrassing to have to wait outside of a normal supermarket while begging his co-workers to have to buy his lunch for him like a child looking for smokes. Whatever the reason, he kept chancing it and kept being led back out like a stray dog every time.

Truth be told, I did it for the opposite reason to the poster that implied I was like Paul Blart. I made an example out of this one bloke so I wouldn't have to chase immature grown men around over €1.50's worth of stock every day. I wanted less hassle and an easier job...so it was an easy trade-off to catch the first guy in the group and let the regular customers see it and spread the word that the security in that place were right bollixes who wouldn't let you away with anything. It also meant I didn't need to make as many arrests over petty crimes, since arrests are messy business as anyone in security will know, but at the same time keep stock loss low.

Giving staff and college discounts to punters is another story, though. I'd see that as a sound, fair way to 'beat the system'...if you're working for a big multi-national who won't notice the difference and not a small, independent business who needs every cent they can get.

Chuck Stone

snubbleste wrote: »

Euro coins came into circulation 1 January 2002. How could they be new in September 2005?

It's Cork City. Time runs a bit slower here.

We can only pick up TV and radio from years ago.

sunflower27

Chuck Stone wrote: »

It's Cork City. Time runs a bit slower here.

We can only pick up TV and radio from years ago.

You know what happened on 9/11???

problemchimp

Grew up close to a scrap metal yard in Blackpitts in Dublin. A couple of nights a week we'd jump the wall, get some lead or copper and sell it back to them the next day. Did that from age 11 to 14. Made a good few bob.
Also stripped the lead from the old Jacobs factory roof when it closed down and made a fortune. My brother had pigeons and we used to sell them to people and as soon as they'd let them out to fly they'd come straight back to us.(well some of them).

Chuck Stone

sunflower27 wrote: »

You know what happened on 9/11???

What?

Is that like the late news?