Hoyts Candybar Overcharging of Combos

LBurrows97 on 10/06/2016 - 01:31
Last edited 10/06/2016 - 01:35

Hi everyone,

This is my first time posting on this website. I've noticed a repeated pattern of being overcharged for popcorn combos at Hoyts and am curious to see whether anyone else on here has experienced the same problem.

I sent the following written complaint to Hoyts Customer Service:

"Hi,

I am a regular customer of your Hoyts ***** cinema and a Hoyts Rewards member. I have been noticing that I am getting charged a different price for a Large popcorn combo every time I visit this cinema. This has been occurring for a number of months. After checking my Hoyts Rewards points statement I can see that this is because it is being processed on the register differently every time I visit. In the screenshot of the points statement I've attached you can see that on 02 June I was charged for an individual Large Coke for $7.90 and Large popcorn for $9.60 for a total price of $17.50. This was at the same time popcorn combos were advertised as being 10% off for Hoyts Rewards members on your website. I actually asked the cashier about this and she insisted the 10% discount only applied to promotional combos and it would work out more expensive that way. Tonight (09 June) I was charge for an Alice Through the Looking Glass Large combo which costs $19.90 despite not asking for an ATTLG combo and only being given a standard Large Popcorn Combo. I have checked the price for a large popcorn combo and it is advertised as being $16.10.

I have been getting overcharged for popcorn combos in this way for a number of months. Now I find it very hard to believe that each staff member that has served me has simply made a mistake. The continual, repeated overcharges for popcorn combos that I have experienced hints that perhaps the staff have been instructed to process the sales this way in this cinema to boost sales. Under the "Australian Privacy Principles (APP) Guidelines 12: Access to Personal Information" I would like to request a full copy of my Hoyts Rewards member statement showing all transactions since I have been a Rewards member.

I would like to be compensated for the repeated overcharging that I have experienced and feel as though an internal investigation and retraining of staff is warranted to ensure that this does not continue.

Thanks and Regards,

Hoyts Rewards Membership No: **************"

I am waiting to hear a response from them.

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Comments

  • Richardc on 10/06/2016 - 05:16
    +3

    Time for ACCC and Today Tonight?

    • altomic on 10/06/2016 - 07:42

      The UN have stepped in over this particular issue many times. What do you think Rwanda was really about?

      • geek001 on 10/06/2016 - 10:05
        -1

        @altomic, I literally laughed out loud when I saw this. I just wanted to say I appreciate your humour.

  • andy19363 on 10/06/2016 - 06:47
    +1

    And here was I, thinking that climate change was one of the key issues of our time…….

  • RockyRaccoon on 10/06/2016 - 08:54
    +1

    Welcome to Ozbargain and some bored trolling. 😀

    However its probably better to post the details of their reply so we can see if its an issue they resolve or ignore

  • ChrisLevo on 10/06/2016 - 09:09
    +1

    Jobs and growth.

  • Nugs on 10/06/2016 - 09:20
    +10

    why are you buying coke & popcorn from them anyway.

    surely a true ozbargainer would come prepared with home popped popcorn and a $1 frozen coke from macjacks?

    • nubzy on 10/06/2016 - 12:08
      +2

      +1 only fools buy the drinks and snacks from the cinema. Smart people go to supermarket/takeaway shop and take their own stuff in. They are making an absolute killing on popcorn and postmix drinks which wouldn't cost more than $2 to produce

  • [Deactivated] on 10/06/2016 - 09:40

    Brady Halls with that special investigation tonight on ACA.

  • tomsco on 10/06/2016 - 09:41
    +2

    Interested to see their response

  • Succulent Synth on 10/06/2016 - 10:40
    +2

    Good luck, Hoyts customer service are a bunch of muppets that will close your case and ignore you rather than resolve it.

    I booked tickets on their website using optus vouchers and it invalidated the voucher but didn't issue tickets. I opened 4 cases, they kept saying "the tickets are in the mail" and closed the case. 6 months later and still no replacement tickets.

    • Burrows97 on 10/06/2016 - 17:03

      Yeah I emailed them before about missing Rewards Points and they replied saying that the rewards points were in fact on my account. I just gave up on the issue after that :/

      • Succulent Synth on 10/06/2016 - 19:15

        It's pretty much their policy to dick you around until you go away

  • supnigs super skids on 10/06/2016 - 10:51

    hi, its me yogi bear (:()=Oo

  • Davo1111 on 10/06/2016 - 12:12
    +8

    an admission you buy cinema popcorn/drinks should be an automatic ban from ozbargain

  • ssx on 10/06/2016 - 12:20

    I'd like to hear the outcome as well. I always assumed that the combos were cheaper and the prices aren't displayed clearly (in my local one anyway).

    • Davo1111 on 10/06/2016 - 12:45

      I always assumed that the combos were cheaper and the prices aren't displayed clearly

      Apparently this isnt always the case - i remember a previous post about it.

    • [Deactivated] on 10/06/2016 - 12:51
      -1

      Combo deals aren't always cheaper. You'll see combo deals advertised in a lot of places which are simply the same price as if you had bought the combo constituents individually.

      • Burrows97 on 10/06/2016 - 17:05
        +1

        If you read the full post you can see I mentioned that the combos are advertised as being $16.10 which is cheaper than buying them individually which is how they charged me in one instance.

        • goodcopbadcop on 15/06/2016 - 12:23

          Hey Burrows97! If this overcharging situation is like a needle in your eye - then I am surprised that you were not onto this straight away and price checked when you were charged too much for a combo the first time and every time after that?
          The reason why Hoyts doesn't follow up is that they hope that you will forget it all and then they don't have to investigate it and involve managers and staff who, to be honest, couldn't be bothered remembering anything about what was charged on that shift.
          It is going to be your word against some transient cashier - unless you kept a receipt for each of these occasions? The cashier doesn't care as he/she is ultimately there to do a shift and get paid.

          In these situations it's the squeaky wheel that gets the oil - so make sure you know what the prices are meant to be and get loud at the time and object to being charged the wrong price!! Get empowered and let them know that it isn't good enough. It's all well and good sending a long written complaint to Hoyt's Head Office in the hope that someone will notice and give you a refund. However, it is much harder to prove.

          So the next time it happens (and it probably will) make sure give your best drama queen performance and make sure everyone around you knows what is going on. Obviously you are going to have to get them to understand that you are totally pissed off. If making noise isn't your style- then you can politely ask them to check the price of a combo please?
          OMG paying $7.90 - that is highway robbery for a large paper cup of watery bulk buy syrup mixer that supposedly is Coke. I'd be kicking up a stink having to pay that - and no - I'd never pay that or buy such a product that isn't the real thing.

          Get a bit organised and bring drinks and goodies from home or go to the supermarket on the way at least. AT least then - you are self sufficient. You don't pay through the nose for snacks and drinks - and you will never have to be overcharged or deal with that cashier again. And it will save you heaps of money in the long term!

          Several things come out of this that a half decent organisation should be addressing:

          1. TRAINING - All cashiers - even the transient ones- need to be trained consistently so that the products are known and the correct prices are charged. This can't be too hard or difficult so that every worker knows all about food items, combo's and prices.
          2. COMBO MARKETING - The marketing tactic of grouping food items together in a combination and then advertising a price that is a little cheaper than if these items had been bought separately - is as old as the hills and should happen for all combo's and is a trick to get you to hand over more of your money. And do the maths - if it isn't cheaper then ask them why not? If a customer asks for a "Combo" then that should immediately bring up a combo price on the cash registers. It's time for Hoyts to get their cash registers programmed accordingly. Then all that is required by the cashier is to hit that combo button and the correct price will come up every time. Mindlessly!
          3. PRICE DISPLAY - Prices should be displayed and available at point of purchase because not to do that means that Hoyts is misleading customers and being sneaky catching people unawares. I guess staff keep quiet hoping that people will just pay up anyway because because to put them on display when they are so high, is embarrassing.

          Perhaps placing your complaint on their FaceBook page might move your case along a little.

    • Sammy2000 on 12/06/2016 - 15:36

      I haven't seen any prices listed for quite some time.
      Lately, at a few different cinemas, we have had to buy tickets at the candy bars as the ticket booths are always closed. Slows down the queue with everyone asking for prices.

      • Burrows97 on 13/06/2016 - 19:52

        The prices in this cinema were displayed on a laminated A4 sheet on the wall. It was pretty hard to find but they do display them in the cinema.

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