Question:
Hi Rabbi, I went the other day to ShopRite, and did self checkout their was an error with the machine and between talking to rep and checking out I, realized after I left the store that I never paid for an item? Do I have to go back now and pay for it ? I don’t know if ShopRite is owned by Jews or not or if that is even a factor based I. Previous read questions posted . Thank you
Answer:
Hello,
The item should be returned to the store, regardless if the owners are Jewish or not. The reason is because when you walk into the store and explain to the cashier that after you checked out, you noticed that this item was not paid for, it will make a kiddush Hashem.
I personally once had such an experience. I was in Walmart, and after checking out, and loading the bags into my car, I noticed an item that wasn’t in any of the bags, but was lying on the bottom of the cart. It looked suspicious, because after checking out each item, it gets put into a shopping bag. Why wasn’t this item inside a bag? I Iooked at the bill and indeed, it wasn’t check out. I went to the cashier, that I check on out in, and waiting on line again, and then explained to her that there must have been an oversight, but I just realized that this item wasn’t paid for, and I want to pay for it. There were two older, non-Jewish women in the line in back of me who saw and over heard what was happening, and then I heard one of them say in a nice loud voice, “It’s good to see that there are still honest people in the world”!
Best wishes
