Paper bag charge

endofrainbow

Anyone know if takeaways can charge for paper bags?.

Atlantic Dawn

There's no levy on paper bags, however a retailer can charge you for any type of bag if they wish whether it's paper or plastic or recyclable or not. It's a rather poor practice for a takeaway, it's not like you are going to carry the food out in your hands 😁

endofrainbow

Yes that's what I thought.

Atlantic Dawn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119359941#Comment_119359941

I suppose costs are climbing but it would make more sense to stick a percentage increase across the board rather than make it stand out like a charge on the bag. Out of interest how much extra was it, they should be passing it on at cost price and not profiteering on it.

macvin

paper bags have soared in price, (doubled in price since 2020 as have all cardboard and paper products) so I suppose its a way of not applying the extra cost on people that don't need them. I presume its an extra bag that is not absolutely necessary?

endofrainbow

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119359969#Comment_119359969

no it's not an extra bag, it's a small paper carried bag for your food - 22c which is near enough what you pay for a plastic bag. States on the receipt that it's a bag levy - just another way of gouging customers.

Cabaal

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119360109#Comment_119360109

Vote with your feet or bring your own bag in future.

If people are willing to pay the amount they deserve everything they get.

3 Owls in a Coat

Zara charge for bags also - I agree to a certain extent with it.

I have bundles of bags that I used to donate to charity shops who gladly took them off my hands.

Bags are also a way of advertising but when the OP mentioned that they chipper was charging for the bags I was imagining filling my duffle coat pockets with coleslaw chips in one and a burger in the other.

Lemsiper

They charging for both the white inner bag and brown outer?

...Ghost...

Walk Away if this happens to you. Any charges should be just built into the price of the product or service unless it's a real levy...and a paper bag does not carry a levy.

This happened in a chipper in Kildare a couple of weeks ago. Chips, Chicken piece, curry sauce and a can I think was my order. It was €10 exactly for the order. I was asked if I wanted a bag and said yes....not wanting to carry the items separately around to the car. No charge was mentioned, or printed anywhere.

I was asked for €10.25. As I had only the €10 in my hand (cash), I asked was it not €10 for the food....and was informed there was a 25c bag levy. "That's for plastic bags" I said. "No, it's all carry bags" I was told. I wasn't going to be treated like a mug just because it's only 25c. I left the bag there, along with the food and took my tenner elsewhere.

beachhead

There should be no levies on paper bags of any size but as stated above the business can do what they like.Poor form though.More gouging

Calahonda52

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121066274#Comment_121066274

Not so as more and more folk are bringing their own bags...

It is better that the price of the bag is split out rather than just add it on at the product level

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120992560#Comment_120992560

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121066274#Comment_121066274

Out of curiosity, have you seen a reference maybe to a written legislation somewhere, which says business can do what they like ? I don’t seem to see it anywhere online or maybe not looking in the right place.

elperello

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122059550#Comment_122059550

They can charge what they like but they shouldn't represent a charge for a paper bag as a levy.

Levy implies that it is like the Plastic Bag Levy.

The Plastic Bag Levy is underpinned by legislation.

No such legislation applies to paper bags.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122059598#Comment_122059598

Not sure whether it is applicable in Ireland but I read somewhere in EU that businesses cannot charge if they have a brand name on the paper bag. Not sure if this is in some legislation's fine print or something and thus wondering if there is such a thing here. The other day last week I went to Sportsdirect and they were like - "Would you like a bag for 70c" I found it pretty weird for buying items worth 137€ !! I'm so cheap that I obv did not take the bag :D But I understand some will say you have 137€ for a pair of clothing but you don't have 70c for a bag (probably it was their reusables though). I think paper bags should be given anyway with items of clothing unpacked food takeaways etc. without any levy.

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122061204#Comment_122061204

I have never heard of such legislation and there certainly isn't any in Ireland.

Uncle Pierre

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122059550#Comment_122059550

There's no legislation to explicitly state that a business can charge a fee for paper bags.

The important point however is that nor is there any legislation to say that they can't. If something is not prohibited by legislation, then it's permitted.

Just to confirm as well that any charge for a paper bag is nothing to do with the levy on plastic bags that's charged by Government. A charge on a paper bag is not a levy at all, and is instead simply a price the business puts on it, same as they put a price on everything else they offer to the consumer.

Edit - had first mistakenly said plastic bags in the first line, rather than paper bags. Sorry!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122061204#Comment_122061204

That may be national law somewhere, but it's not, at least as far as I am aware, European legislation.

JVince

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122061204#Comment_122061204

Did they also say a Garda can't give you a ticket if he doesn't wear his hat?

If something sounds really stupid, take it that it is made up.

It's quite standard in Europe to pay for bags - paper and plastic, with and without brand names and shop names.