A Sydney man has slammed a cafe for adding two surcharges to his order, claiming there was “no mention” of these extra charges anywhere.
The sandwich at Kosta’s Takeaway in Rosebery was priced at $18.50 but ended up costing $21.27 after additional surcharges were applied.
These included a $2.55 weekend surcharge and a 1.2 percent card payment fee, for a total of 22 cents.
Complaining about the charges on Reddit, the man wrote: “I was shocked by the notification on my phone that I had been charged $21.27.
‘The menu price is high, but the total was too high.
“I came back after I finished eating and the guy said they had a weekend surcharge.”
The customer said the total price of his sandwich surprised him since there was “no mention” of the two surcharges.
‘There is no mention of a weekend or card surcharge anywhere, not on the menu, not on the notice board, not at the cashier.
“Almost $3 of undisclosed sneaky surcharges for a sandwich are just a joke.”
The customer’s sandwich was assessed a weekend surcharge and a 1.2 percent credit card fee.
The customer believes that the popularity of the Square payment system has made it more difficult for customers to see how much they will be charged since there is no screen in front of them.
The man also expressed concern about the store’s payment terminal, noting that it did not have a screen to show the total amount before payment.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission says businesses are legally allowed to charge surcharges on weekends and holidays, as long as these surcharges are clearly displayed to customers.
“They do not need to include this charge in the total price displayed for their products, as an exemption applies to them under the law,” he says.
‘However, if they charge such a surcharge, they must include these words on the menu: ‘A surcharge of (percentage) applies on (day or days).’
“These words should be at least as prominent as the most prominent price on the menu.”
The ACCC said customers should be aware of any surcharges before ordering and, if they are not listed on the menu, they should be “displayed in some other prominent way”.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Kosta’s Takeaway for comment.