Subway customer buys sandwich, accidentally gives Rs 5 lakh as tip

The woman said that she tried to pay for her Subway sandwich with her card and then attempted to type her telephone number in a bid to collect the store's reward points. (Representational Image).

Accidental over-tipping has become a menace, over the years, with many customers falling for it and later finding it hard to get a solution due to the legal complexities involved in the situation.

Recently, a Subway customer in the United States accidentally paid a tip of Rs 5 lakh while paying for her salami, pepperoni and ham sandwich, a report in The Newsweek said.

Vera Conner, a resident of Atlanta, Georgia, ordered the sandwich costing $7.54 (approximately Rs 628), but mistakenly ended up offering a tip of $7,105.44 (approximately Rs 5 Lakh).

Conner used her Bank of America credit card to make the transaction and while reviewing her receipts for the week a few days later realised her mistake. The woman said that she tried to pay for her sandwich with her card and then attempted to type her telephone number in a bid to collect the store's reward points.

It was at this point that Connor felt she had accidentally typed a part of her number into the section, which asks whether the customer wished to pay a tip. "When I looked at my receipt, I was like, ‘oh, my God.’ I thought this number looked familiar; it was the last six numbers of my phone number. Who would leave a tip like that? I could have gone to Italy and got the sandwich. I know exactly what it normally costs. It’s $7.54," Connor told local news channel WSB-TV 2.

She then spoke to Subway officials and also contacted Bank of America and even visited the Subway store for assistance. The manager told her that the refund was the bank's responsibility.

Bank of America refused the refund as the women still had to pay for the sandwich. The claim had to be resubmitted to discuss the chances of getting the tip amount back.

After trying for one month, Connor got a "temporary credit" for the charge. She felt relieved at having received the amount but expressed disappointment about reward apps and the losses they can cause customers if they erred.

Also read: Subway launches first ever 'mini sandwich' in Pakistan to tackle inflation