Refused change

Postal clerk: “We are not a bureau de change here”

That's how much 1.06 euros is in small coins (around 30 pieces). According to the so-called "Scheidemünzengesetz", 50 of these would have to be accepted.(Bild: Doris SEEBACHER)

A postal customer in Wiener Neustadt wanted to pay the amount of one euro and six cents in small coins. The counter clerk refused to accept it and responded gruffly with the words: "We're not a bureau de change here." But she should have accepted the small change.

Markus Neumeister from Wiener Neustadt is annoyed as hell about the yellow post. He was supposed to pay 6.06 euros to post a parcel. He handed the lady at the counter a five-euro bill and the rest in small change (about 20 to 30 coins).

Postalclerk refused to accept the customer's "change" 
"However, the postal clerk refused my small change very rudely, arguing that this was not a bureau de change," reports Neumeister. He pointed out to her that his small change was an official means of payment. "She then said that it was in the house rules that she didn't have to accept cent coins."

"There were only harsh words, but the postal worker was unable to show me the house rules mentioned. Even a written confirmation that she refused to accept the cent coins was rejected," says Neumeister. To save himself further trouble, he then paid the entire amount with a ten-euro bill.

To prevent this case from escalating any further, I paid the amount with a ten-euro bill.

Markus Neumeister, verärgerter Postkunde

From his point of view, the so-called "Scheidemünzengesetz", which states that coins must always be accepted in quantities of up to 50.

Swiss Post admits misconduct and apologizes
And what does Swiss Post say? "At our post offices, we accept cash payments of up to 500 coins per customer per payment. We should therefore have accepted the coins for payment in this case. We apologize for the inconvenience and have retrained our employees," says the Swiss Post press office.