Stomper claims mala chain’s 4-cent ‘rounding up’ is ‘unethical’, outlet says it’s a system default
A woman has accused Zhang Liang Malatang of being “unethical” after noticing what she believes was a four-cent rounding in her bill.
Stomper T shared a photo of her receipt from the popular mala chain’s outlet at 100AM Mall, where she ordered food for takeaway on April 29 at 3.38pm.
She told Stomp she had ordered the food with her daughter. Upon paying via a digital payment platform, she realised that the amounts on the receipt did not appear to tally.
Her takeaway order came up to $11.89. With $1.07 in GST, her total should have been $12.96.
“I thought it was weird that the price ($13) was a whole number, because they usually charge by weight,” the Stomper said.
When asked, T said she had not noticed this during previous visits. She added that she was surprised, as she had been understanding towards the restaurant on a previous occasion when she found bugs on her vegetables.
“Those could have been washed off easily,” she said, adding that she had raised it with the manager but did not pursue the matter further as she was a “loyal” customer.
This time, she said she pointed out the four-cent difference to the manager, whom she described as “neutral” in his reaction. She claimed he simply told her that he would inform his boss.
The incident prompted the Stomper to speak up, saying she wanted to raise awareness about what she viewed as an “unethical practice”.
“On principle, I will not return (to the restaurant),” she told Stomp said on a call.
“I just want to reiterate that I am not looking to get my four cents back, it’s just that I want to bring awareness so they stop doing this. If they need to, they should increase the prices, but do so openly,” she added.
Zhang Liang Malatang responds
In response to Stomp's queries, Zhang Liang Malatang's 100AM outlet manager Mia said on May 5 that the store appreciates Stomper T’s feedback.
“The point of sale (POS) system is set to round off by default," she said, citing it as a possible reason for what the Stomper experienced.
Mia also shared receipts from two other customers on April 29 showing totals that were rounded down instead.
The restaurant confirmed it is investigating the matter with its POS system provider and will take immediate steps to rectify the matter.
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