How often do you enter your Pin number without bothering to check how much you're being charged?
Whether you're cautious with cards or a chilled out chip-and-pin user, this tale might play on your mind when you make your next purchase.
A 28-year-old man got the shock of his life when he swung by his local boozer to pick up a few bottles of American craft beer.
In a freak accident, Kris Wines, a specialist off licence based in Islington, London, charged the North Londoner a fraction over £223,000 - the price of the average British home - for six bottles of beer.
The real price of the drinks was £22.30.
Unsurprisingly the customer, who works in market research, did not have enough funds in his account, so the payment was declined.
What really happened?
It seems the customer's Pin was somehow appended on to the price, adding four digits to the total sum charged (this is why some of the digits have been redacted in the image above).
He then entered his Pin again, correctly, which was verified and allowed the transaction to be processed - and declined.
He said: “I wasn’t really paying attention but I glanced down and saw the first two numbers. They looked fine so I tapped in my Pin. As soon as it declined the shop assistant and I realised what had happened and we just laughed. It was funny but I will definitely pay more attention when I pay by card from now on.”
The manager at Kris’s Wines told Telegraph Money that in all the shops’ years of trading not a single customer has complained of being overcharged. He said the incident is likely to have occurred because the man entered his Pin too soon.
A spokesperson from The UK Cards Association, said: "It’s always worth double-checking the sum to be paid on the Pin pad before completing the transaction.
"Mistakes are rare, but if you do spot an error in the amount paid on a card after the transaction has gone through, you should first contact the retailer in order to get the issue resolved as quickly as possible. They will be able to refund your account.
"If you can’t resolve the matter with the retailer, then you should speak to your bank or card company who will try to assist you."
