Anyone Else Experienced Similar - Included Really Means Additional

what is your opinion on last minute after services surcharges.

i purchased 3 health treatment on visits from elimis
the price listing was clear with pricing includes gst
we supplier/i both verbally repeat the price before commencing services

this is the full receipt.

<b>subtotal $x (agreed price)
other $y (included 5% gratuity)
payment $x+$y

…………………………….
sign

services 'Include' a 5% gratuity, please advise to have this removed

</b>

once leaving i am shown a block of paper to sign to approve payment on the dotted line.
the complete top of the page was covered.and they cover bottom with their finger to highlight dotted line. unlike normal their finger remains until completion

every visit with different staff the same practice was employed,
cover all prices, terms, rights and surcharges

at reading further i questioned why being charges additional 5% considering i agreed on a price and the terms are prices includes 5% charge, since prices that include 10% gst are just that included
credit cards charges are additional 1.5%

I was refused my right to decline the gratuity. so i took to manager to argue the includes vs additional so they finally took off the 'so called voluntary' automatically selected surcharge,

the provider also only provides receipts on request, they dont ask and i had to wait 10 minutes to get my first invoice i requested certainly a practice to discourage people discovering this practice.

i have no doubt based on multiple instances of concealment hundreds of people a week are duped thousands by the deliberate deceptive practices.

Comments

  • oh and my wife also had a treatment and she was told gratuity was a compulsory tax that she must pay.
    i got hers refunded, but the pressure placed on her to absolve rights to decline was unfair.

  • +1

    TLP:CRF
    (Too Little Punctuation; Couldn't Really Follow)

    However it does seem deceptive for a business to say you must ask to remove a gratuity, that they have tried to stop you seeing in the first place.

    • Just a reminder how crap an on-screen keyboard For windows 8 and 10 is vs this android with word prediction and swipe

  • +1

    Gratuity? That is a US practice where they pay pauper salaries to service staff and let them beg for the make up amount.
    Here and most other civilised countries the cost of employing staff is included in the cost of the product or service.
    Exceptional service can always be tipped … but using that practice to cover staff income is just a rip off.

    • +1

      Funnily enough the receipt also list option to add a tip

      • Noooo… fair dinkum!!

  • +1

    This is a 100% rip off and and is not a fair dinkum aussie practice.

    Absolutely pathetic, tell then to get nicked.

  • +2

    Sounds like what Royal carribean did to us.

    • P&o here

      But I blame the contracted health operations provider emelis
      Emelis claims to be used by all large cruise liners.

    • RCI operating in aust are keen to get their extras. RCI operating here also use US$ as onboard currency… ever noticed the rip off with their exchange rate? They are out for every cent.

      • Plus the 15% surcharge on all the drinks..

  • Hi ttc72 you have got me interested, I was or am thinking of a Royal Caribbean cruse. What happened.

    • They decided to introduce 'compulsory' tipping on our cruise. Never notified us until we were onboard that they were planning on charging us each an extra $12.50 a day on a ten night cruise, and the notification was done with a letter on the bed. There was a family a couple of doors up from us, they even applied the surcharge to their toddler. We were able to get it removed but they weren't happy to do it. So if you choose them just be aware of this extra, unless you pay it up front so they try to get it anyway they can.
      When you go to the pacific islands, they accept Australian money. RCI told everyone that the local currency was french, charged everyone to change it over, then charged them to change it back to Aus dollars. They would have known perfectly well that they accept Aus dollars, just another way to rip the passengers off.
      If you want to use their casino on board, it's American dollars, so they will charge you to change it over, and charge you to change back. Heard lots of people complaining about how much they were charged.
      They also don't tell you about the 15% surcharge on all the bought drinks, including coffee which you pretty much had to buy as the supplied coffee was pretty much dishwater (even a staff member called it that.

      • +1

        Thanks, I was thinking of a Royal Caribbean cruse, but not anymore. Thanks again.

  • So it sounds like it was best to take the paper off them and have a good look at it; not blaming you just remembering that for myself for future reference. Not sure why a health service would include an included gratuity or a tip; not the way we do things out here. (I wonder if this even makes it to the actual person providing the service). These people sound dodgy. From what I've heard cruises often have poorly paid crew members where the wage is supplemented by tips from the passengers.

    • everything on a cruise ship is very enjoyable, but they abuse your intelligence and exploit lack of means to verify price claims.
      suggesting you must purchase their magic tools and elixirs because they are excessively expensive in australia or not available. i certainly didnt believe that and surprise surprise even with gst same elixirs on land are exact same price or less.

      the greatest laugh i got was.
      billabong store onboard had plenty of signs
      dont pay GST save upto 10% on all products on board

      is gst really variable?
      i noticed the prices were pretty much exact to the Aud RRP on the billabong gear on land (despite upto 10% saving :)

      spirits duty free on board were cheaper than on land duty free bottle shops which was surprising

      • "Magic Tools and Elixars" - Didn't know we were getting floating Hogswarts now days- Ripofus expelliarmus.

        • marketing is a science these days
          selling water selling air, oils to solve every thing from happiness to fatness
          ice to Eskimos

          :)

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