Retailing For Dummies, Chapter 27.
Charge your customers tax, but don’t actually record the sales transaction…
A recent visit to a long standing liquor/wine store near the geographic center of Peoria got me thinking (scary, I know) … I had previously picked up a vibe that this business preferred cash over credit, but wrote it off as a small businessman trying to save on credit card fees, which I know can be excessive.
My latest visit was interesting in that the manager saw me pulling change from my pocket, signaling that I would be paying cash. He totaled the tax on a small calculator instead of the register. I paid and he hit a button on the register with a ‘ding’ to open the drawer.
Cash transaction. No receipt, no record. He might as well had put my (tax added) cash in his pocket.
I am certain that this practice is not uncommon, but I’ve never seen it with my own eyes, and he was very friendly, natural and sly in his actions. Had he not asked in previous visits if I wanted a receipt and had I not joked and agreed with a friend about him preferring cash, I am certain that I would have never noticed his tax cheating ways.
Taxes suck. Tax evaders suck more.
May 21st, 2008 at 10:46 pm
Nice theme.
May 22nd, 2008 at 7:38 am
Yes, it looks strangely familiar. What’s my cut on the google ad?
May 22nd, 2008 at 8:35 am
PI,
99% of people who work on a tip-based income are tax evaders. What about them?
May 22nd, 2008 at 8:42 am
That is true, but a waitress isn’t collecting tax and then pocketing it. This is a retail business charging me tax, pocketing it, and then under reporting his business income, thereby avoiding further tax.
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:57 am
PI: Your cut goes to te hosting bill I get every month.
And feel free to use Widgets to create your own good ad, or PayPal button, etc.
And I completely agree with you regarding waitstaff. And in some cases, the IRS assumes that these people are getting a certain percentage in tips and makes them pay taxe3s on it anyway, whether they get it or not. I simply don’t eat at a sit down restaurant unless I can afford a 20 percent tip.
May 22nd, 2008 at 6:11 pm
Was it the owner behind the counter? Does the owner know about this? First off it constitutes theft from YOU and every other customer he does it to. Depending on how it is being covered it could constitute theft from the owner of the establishment. Then there is the whole tax fraud angle to lather onto it. Not uncommon? Not any place I shop. Yes the police will arrest them if it can be shown to be happening.
You will notice there is a sign in Avanti’s that says ‘Only pay what shows up on the till’. It is to prevent this sort of thing.
May 23rd, 2008 at 7:10 am
“Does the owner know about this?”
Yes, he definitely does. He’s the one that pocketed my sales tax. No wonder why his prices are oftentimes cheaper than other establishments.