This left me open mouthed

oliveoil99

Out in our city centre to-day and a chap came up to me and asked me for £1.90p for a coffee I just looked at him open mouthed and he said 'Please yourself Mrs'. What happened to 20p and have you got some spare change has inflation hit the homeless as well? I can't afford Starbucks prices maybe I'm doing something wrong. lol

Yorkie1

Not sure I'd have had a good response to that, either!

meritaten

I think I would be gobsmacked too! a plea for 'any spare change' would have me looking for a handful of silver and copper and I would give it gladly. but £1.90 for a coffee????

cakeforbrains

jaqs_back wrote: »

Most people who beg have some kind of addiction. I never directly give money to the homeless.

That's a massively sweeping statement with absolutely no back up whatsoever.

SmallL

My OH gives a homeless man outside our local asda food or a drink rathe than cash

Nicki

I don't like being asked directly for money or a set amount of money, but if I pass by someone homeless I would usually give £2 anyway or occasionally £5 if I don't have change. Don't see a lot of point personally in giving 20p as they won't be able to buy any food or drink for that kind of money and will need at least 10 people to donate to them to even get themselves a hot drink or a sandwich.

This_Year

There's a chap wanders the streets around here and if he sees someone he asks for some money to get to xxxx to visit his daughter in hospital as he's lost his train ticket. He's been doing it for weeks now but each time she's just been rushed in that day.

We also saw him in xxxx asking the same thing to get back to my town.

Gillyx

There is a homeless man around here, I seem him daily, I have never seen him ask for money or anything, I try to give him something once or twice a week, usually just a sandwich or sausage roll and hot drink from the Tesco Express, he is always really grateful for it. I don't have a lot, but my heart breaks for him, regardless of how he got there, he is still a human being!

cakeforbrains

jaqs_back wrote: »

It's based on professional experience. If you have professional experience, then I bow down to you.

What professional experience? Can you point me in the direction of any research about this?

barbarawright

This_Year wrote: »

There's a chap wanders the streets around here and if he sees someone he asks for some money to get to xxxx to visit his daughter in hospital as he's lost his train ticket. He's been doing it for weeks now but each time she's just been rushed in that day.

We also saw him in xxxx asking the same thing to get back to my town.

I once gave a chap money to get a bus to X just as I saw the bus appearing over the horizon. He didn't get on it...Next day he asked me for money to get a bus to X just as the bus came into sight. I offered to buy him a ticket but he was insistent he didn't want me to go to that amount of trouble. He didn't get his money...

I do still occasionally give money to people in the street but never when they're sitting by a cashpoint, obviously expecting a tenner. I'm not *that* generous:rotfl:

RevolvingDoor

This_Year wrote: »

There's a chap wanders the streets around here and if he sees someone he asks for some money to get to xxxx to visit his daughter in hospital as he's lost his train ticket. He's been doing it for weeks now but each time she's just been rushed in that day.

There used to be a woman like that in the town I lived in. She said she had lost her purse and needed £1 or something, I saw her at least 5 times a week and she would ask the same thing.

I usually give money to Big Issue sellers but not to people asking for money on the street.