SINGAPORE – The owner of a roast meat hawker stall in Lucky Plaza is looking for a diner who made a Nets payment of $750, likely instead of $7.50, on Dec 11.
Mr Victor Ng, the owner of Wang Fu Roasted Delight, took to Facebook hoping to return the money after he saw the huge amount transferred to the stall’s account.
The 48-year-old had received a notification from Nets on his phone about the transaction, he told The Straits Times on Dec 12.
“When I saw the amount, $750, I was very sure the customer keyed in the wrong amount,” said Mr Ng.
He added that the customer could have ordered the wanton noodle set, which costs around $7.50.
Mr Ng said that none of his staff, including himself, could remember who made the transaction as they had received many orders that day.
“I immediately contacted Nets and was told to wait for the customer to come back for a refund,” he said.
This led him to post on his business’ Facebook page, hoping that the diner would return.
Mr Ng also posted on Facebook groups like Hawkers United, and many users applauded his honesty.
Initially, he had planned to donate the money to charity, as part of Wang Fu’s regular charity drives to organisations in the community.
However, he was told by Nets that he is not allowed to do that, and should wait seven days before returning the money to Nets.
“Now, I am just waiting for the customer to call me. Our education system taught us to be honest,” he said.
Users of digital payment methods have been known to accidentally transfer more money than intended when they forget to include the decimal point, which turns a transaction of a few dollars into a transaction of hundreds.
Some banks’ payment applications, including OCBC’s, automatically enter the decimal point for users when transferring money. However, other payment applications require the customer to manually enter the symbol.
A Nets spokeswoman told The Straits Times that in the event merchants discover a wrong transaction, they should contact Nets to facilitate a refund.
She added that customers who wrongly transferred money should contact their issuing bank or wallet.
“Nets will work with the bank or wallet to facilitate the refund process from the merchant to the customer,” she said.
The spokeswoman also advised customers who are making digital payments to check the transaction amount to confirm it is correct before sending the money, adding that merchants should also turn on notifications on their NetsBiz application to be aware of new payments.
In March, a customer paid a food stall in Serangoon Garden Market and Food Centre $700 instead of $7.
According to Lianhe Zaobao, Mr William Fong, the owner of the stall Tian Jin Fong Kee, took to Facebook to search for the customer. The balance was refunded succesfully.
In January, a ban mian stall in Woodlands received a payment of $450 instead of $4.50 for a bowl of noodles. The stall, using closed-circuit television footage, identified the customer as an elderly diner who had used DBS PayLah to transfer the money. The money has since been returned to the customer.
