This is a Short Change Scam someone actually tried to use on me, only it wasn’t to make a quick $10, but a quick $50.
To entertain bar guests I used to go to Tannen’s Magic Store on a pretty regular basis, and just a week prior to someone trying to run the Short Change scam on me I bought a set of instructions on how to do this “magic” trick swindle. Lucky for me I did!
The swindle I’m talking about is the Short Change one in the video below (or if you click the post headline, the second scam in the featured video above).
Here’s how it went down: A guy came into my bar and asked me for a $6 Perrier, paid with a $50, and I got his change and came back. He says “No, wait, I found $6”. He adds it to the $44 change and says “Can you give me back my $50?”
I say “Sure”.
So I go to the register get the $50, he gives me the “$50” in smaller bills and I notice that it’s only $49.
I tell him “it’s only $49 sir” and he says, “Oh, I’m sorry” – adds a dollar, and says “Here, here’s another $50 – so just bring me back $100 instead.”
So he’s already gotten his $50 bill back, has given me $49 so my register is now a dollar short, and when I come by to collect the dollar to even up the register – BAM! He hands me a $1, plus the $50 I just gave him and now wants me to make my bank a full $50 short!
Do you see how the scam works?
I’ll show it to you again, only this time making it super simple, without a lot of going back and forth or distractions:
Always complete ONE TRANSACTION AT A TIME.
Site Author, David Jonathan Curtis: David Jonathan Curtis, a seasoned professional in his fifth decade of bartending and bar management, began his career in Midtown Manhattan, NY, tending and managing bars before diving into Manhattan’s bustling nightlife scene. Over the years, he has mastered high-volume, high-pressure bartending as the lead bartender in both iconic Midtown clubs and Wall Street bars, generating over $1,350,000.00 annually in personal drink sales. He has since extended his expertise to establishments in Georgia and now Tampa, Florida. David’s roles as a Bartending Instructor at the American Bartending School in Tampa, while maintaining a second job bartending, and his years experience of managing bars, and working as a Brand Ambassador along with his extensive professional library of over 1,000 bartending books, highlight his dedication to continually refining his craft. He holds a diploma in Bar Management and is BarSmarts certified by Pernod Ricard.
