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The Quick Change / Short Change Scam
The ever-popular Quick Change or Short Change scam has been shown in movies like “Paper Moon” and “The Grifters.” This one still happens about every 9 seconds in America. Grocery stores, boutiques, theaters, bars, toll booths, hot dog stands, and even banks are the venues. The cashier could pull the scam as easily as the customer. If we all know how it works, we can spot it right away and even look out for each other if the altruistic spirit strikes you.
A smart scam artist will forget the $50 or $100 levels of this scam. Most stores won’t accept anything larger than a $20 bill, anyway, and greedy people get caught more often. A deft scam artist can pull this off successfully 20 times a day and make $50,000 a year with weekends off. A heartless, soulless scam artist who’s too lazy to get a job and who doesn’t care about putting other people’s job in jeopardy in these hard times.
Our example will look at this from the you-as-scammer-as-customer point of view. Now PAY ATTENTION…
You’ll start with a $10 bill, a $5 bill, and 15 $1 bills.
Buy something for under $5.
Pay with a $10 bill.
As your change of up to $5 is being retrieved, ask for another $10 bill for ten $1 bills you’re pulling out of your wallet.
Leave your original $5 change out, but pick up the $10 bill while you hand over only nine $1 bills.
Have them check the count as you go through your wallet, putting away the $10 bill and pulling out more singles.
They will count nine $1 bills, so you add 1 more $1 bill and throw on another five $1 bills and a $5 bill and ask for a $20 bill. Cashiers always like to make smaller change for their drawer.
They put the fifteen $1 bills and one $5 bill away and give you a $20 in return.
You just made $10.
If you have to go back and read this sequence again, you’ll realize how confusion is the key here. In fact, if you are ever caught, you can claim confusion yourself. The trick is to start the second transaction before the first transaction is complete. While this scam works anywhere, it’s more often attempted where it’s noisy or busy, or where the cashier is otherwise distracted – possibly by your own charming conversation.
Do not perform this trick at home. It is illegal and immoral and unethical. Besides, what goes around comes around. Just ask O.J.
Scrud Kelley
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I am not ѕure where you’re getting your information, but great topic. I needs to spend some time learning more or understanding more. Thanks for great information I was looking for this info for my mission.
Hey instead of getting pissed off about this, consider it a learning experience. I work at a bank and this is something that would be useful for training purposes to deter being short changed.
Hey Steve,
There’s is no extra dollar. The room cost $25 and they gave him a $2 tip. So you add the $2 to the $25 cost of the room making the total cost with tip $27. Each lady paid $9 period. It did stump me for a second and it shows how easy it is to confuse the mind on money transactions. Good one!
I did this 8 times to the same store over the coures of a week i got caught once and i just said i was confused so i paid what i owed when they caught me and not a penny more
OK… I have one! 3 ladies went to Las Vegas together. They found a room for $30 and split the cost 3 ways…. so how much did each lady pay for her fare share of the room….. naturally $10 each..total $30.. after the ladies were in there room, the hotel manager realized he had over charged the ladies by $5…. The manager told the bell boy to bring them back $5…. Well the bellboy knew he couldn’t split the $5 three ways….. so he gave back each lady $1.. therefor each lady now spent $9 each for there room.. and the bellboy kept the other $2 for a tip…. hmmmm…..
3X9=$27+$2=$29 (where is the missing dollar?)
honestly why are you busting on the guy who wrote the article? he actually said don’t do this because what goes around comes around, I am a cashier and you just have to count your change every time, i can see the trick and have had it done to me once or twice thank goodness for small amounts only. but now i know so its nogo for anyone else, i feel like ive worked long enough to spot fonies, but yeah dont blame the article writer
Lucas… you’re a dickhead…. I know you think you are smart but…. you’re a dickhead. I own a business which sells items which are neither unhelathy or useless. I pay my mortgage and take care of my family with the income i get from my business. I don’t take kindly to people ripping me off. My staff have been scammed by these “honest” people. The only comfort I get from these scammers is knowing that they are pieces of shit that lead piece of shit lives. If your employment ever reaches beyond that of scamming donations… good for you.
man you people are so sad. you thinkk a shortchanger is bad well then grow some wits and dont let it happen. you know if they are clever enough to trick you then maybe you dont deserve your shitty job which probably involves tricking people into buying shit thats useless or unhealthy for them anyways. people are being conned by honest people everyday.i had a job recently which involved tricking people into giving me there credit card numbers ie donations for the aspca–they actually taught me how to “convince”(trick) people out of there money. i saw a girl ask a guy for his number 6 times before he said yes. a con is a con whether its legal or not. not only that it separates the marks from the cons and in this country we’re all marks. think about your government and how much they steal from you. the con is an american tradition. just dont be a sucker and if you actually got fired for being shortchanged haha shame on you not the con
This is an excellent point. Often it’s the cashier scamming the customer rather than the other way around. Always count your change, and always check your receipt. One method – harder to catch – is the cashier ringing up a smaller sale and giving you your correct change, pocketing the difference. In that case they’re stealing from their employer.
I’m becoming more and more aware of the convenient store and fast food “short change” scams that are going on more and more. This occurs OFTEN, and now we’ve caught on. I will give a large bill to the cashier and often am shorted at minimum $1.00. Today it was at a seven eleven but it was $15.00. I knew exactly how much I gave because I only had one $20 as I had just left the bank with it, in the same parking lot. When the young cashier gave me my change he sort of “folded” the three ones (he kept one $5 and one $10) Of course I just shoved it in my pocket. I noticed later of course. I should’ve realized because it was so obvious when he sort of folded the bills. At fast service locations this is so common because people are in a hurry. Imagine, how much these people are scamming if they scam only a few in one hour. Their hourly rate is now doubled or quadrupled! I’ve done enough research now on the topic that I am now ready to go to the newspapers with my study. For those of you that are scamming you’d better stop now because many of you are being watched because we as customers are fed up.
This happened to me today. Luckily I caught him in the act & made me pay him with the $100 he tried to purchase a $10 shirt for. It’s horrible to feel like a victim of the proportion, losing my job, having the situation turn for the worst, knowing it could happen again. I was really shocked to know that many of my co-workers didn’t know. Thankfully, my last job taught me well. I work for a large, highly recognized retail giant & it’s sad to know that many of my fellow employees could lose their job over this. I can only hope karma gets him. What a low life.
I was short changed yesterday for 97 bucks and thats only b/c my boss came stop him and he gave me a tip… the nerve of that creep..
This is not cool this is cruel! I just got short changed for a lot more than $10 too. Think of this people that extra little bit of money could cost someone their job, and you would have that one your conscience forever. I agree that the people that do this are jackasses. Another honest person out of work.
OH!!!!! i got it now. it took me like 10 mins. but when they give you your change and you ask for the 10 ones you give them 9 and you give them 1 more and the five and 5 more that makes 20 but you kept their money that gave you the 10 you just gave it to them in a different form
[...] for a man swindling money from Harrisonburg stores using one of the oldest ploys in the book: the short change scam. On three separate occasions, this unknown male has gone into a store and purchased a drink. When [...]
WHO EVER DOSE THIS SCAM IS A F*CKING JACKASS. I AM A CASHIER( WELL WAS ) AND THE OTHER DAY I GOT FIRED BECAUSE SOME JACKASS DECIDED TO SCAM ME WHEN IT WAS ONLY MY THIRD DAY AT THAT JOB. PEOPLE WHO DO THIS NEED TO GROW THE F*CK UP. GET OFF YOUR ASS AND GET A REAL JOB!
Nice site!
it doesnt has to be exactly like u wrote. the most important is, that the cashiers give u a bill for example $10 like u said, and before they take ur $10 in 10 x $1 or 2 x 5$ (whatever) u say u want 20, and u give em the $10 they gave u back, so its their $10 and ur $10 and u get new 20$ thats +$10 for u
cool sitename man)))
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