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Supermarkets that make you put in a quarter to take a shopping cart are really just paying the homeless $0.25 each to return them from the parking lot.
by mikepurvis 2y ago
Supermarkets that make you put in a quarter to take a shopping cart are really just paying the homeless $0.25 each to return them from the parking lot.
- technothrasher 2y agoIt seems more like the customers are paying the homeless, and the supermarkets are just acting as brokers.
- permo-w 2y agoit's the same for bottle deposits in parts of Europe. anything in a plastic bottle costs an extra ~10c which you can retrieve by depositing the empty in a machine at the supermarket
- permo-w 2y agoin the UK, trolley deposits are much more expensive, at £1. people are more likely to retrieve a £1 than a quarter, but the atomic payout is ~5x higher, so I wonder which scenario yields better pay for the homeless
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- mikepurvis 2y agoI mean ultimately the goal is to find a balance where carts won’t be everywhere and customers aren’t inconvenienced to the point of choosing a different store.
- permo-w 2y agoI mean either way carts aren't gonna be everywhere, and I don't think pounds have ever been a problem for shoppers in the UK