Qatar- Retailers hit by coin shortage

Date

9/9/2015 10:47:02 PM

(MENAFN- The Peninsula)

DOHA: Many customers are irked by shopkeepers offering them poor quality toffees and chocolates in lieu of coins but retailers say they have been hit by a shortage of coins.

They say that banks are not providing them with sufficient quantity of coins. Traders face hefty fines if an unhappy customer lodges a complaint with the Consumer Protection Department.

“The fines go up to QR5000 if it is found that the customer was asked to accept the goodies instead of money against his will. We are helpless since there are not enough coins in circulation in the market” said a retailer running a supermarket in Doha.

“It seems there is a real problem and banks are not able to meet our requests” he added.

He said recently his firm received a warning from the Ministry of Economy and Commerce following a complaint from a customer in this regard.

“We were told that a fine of QR5000 will be imposed if we repeat the violation” said the retailer.

He said the problem is more severe in areas dominated by low- income expatriate workers.

“For them every dirham counts and they are not ready to accept toffees instead of coins. It is not easy to convince them about the shortage. We will be in trouble if they go and complaint” said the retailer.

Some charitable organisations have tied up with hypermarkets and shopping malls to transfer the customers’ small balances to their accounts with their approval. They have introduced this as a an effective way to raise small donations from the public.

The manager of a leading hypermarket in Doha said that his company was slapped with a fine of QR5000 for transferring a very small amount to the account of a charity after the customer complained that it was done without his approval. Small groceries say they have also been hit by the shortage but are not relying on banks to get coins.

“We collect coins from other sources especially suppliers and traders who have a surplus. All shops don’t need coins like us. We also ask the customers to give coins as much as possible” said an expatriate running a grocery in Najma area.

A banking industry source said a major reason for shortage of coins is that they are not circulated in the market like currencies. “Most customers who receive coins from shops during purchases do not carry them back when they make another purchase. They prefer to keep them at home and dispose of them only once or twice in a year” said the source.

As a solution to this problem he proposed the establishment of tellers in shopping malls and other public places that accept coins and convert them into currencies. Such machines are available in some developed countries he added.

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