Is it okay to eat and drink in the store before paying for the goods
Is it okay to eat and drink in the store before paying for the goods
Anonim

Lifehacker asked a lawyer.

Is it okay to eat and drink in the store before paying for the goods
Is it okay to eat and drink in the store before paying for the goods

You are walking through a huge hypermarket and you are thirsty. Water bottles are next to each other, just reach out. But you can not make purchases right away: after 10 minutes, half an hour, an hour - as luck would have it. And the thirst is tormenting now. And you are tormented by the question: is it legal to drink from a bottle and pay for water at the checkout?

Another risky and common situation is when children start to whimper. They ask for juice, fruit puree, chocolate. You can negotiate or quickly shove the coveted delicacy into their hands. And again the question: is it allowed to do so?

According to the lawyer of the European Legal Service Olga Shirokova, the ownership of the thing arises at the time of its transfer, that is, after payment.

Image
Image

Olga Shirokova Lawyer of the European Legal Service

By law, until the product is paid for, you are not allowed to use it. Before the checkout, he is the property of the store and will become yours after receiving a receipt confirming the transaction for the transfer of goods.

Before payment, the buyer has the right:

  • Inspect the goods and get acquainted with them - independently and with the help of the seller.
  • Requiring the seller to demonstrate the action of the product and check the properties in his presence, but this is not possible for the food category.
  • Request that gastronomic products be sold in sliced form, including bread from 400 grams - divided into halves and quarters (except for options in the original packaging).

However, the consumer's right to taste or eat food products before payment is not directly spelled out anywhere. At the same time, if a person puts the opened package into the basket with the explicit intention to make a purchase, nothing bad will happen. But if he “forgets” such a product in the hall, then he can be brought to administrative responsibility for petty theft of someone else's property by misappropriation or embezzlement or for fraud - depending on the amount of damage.

Recommended: