Money Moral Dilemma: Should I ask my friend to pay me exactly what she owes me for tickets?

sunnyflower

I would simply remind her that she hadn't given you the full amount, do it casually not in an accusatory way. If she persists maybe it's time to stop the arrangement.

Ed264

I wouldn't put up with this. If this is a new friend, it's mickey-taking at best. Drop her and go on your own.

LP53

It’s a tricky one. Is she usually generous or is she tight? If she pays for other things or drives you there etc I wouldn’t mention it as she probably thinks 3 pounds not important.
if it is and she generally taking advantage I would be annoyed and let her buy the tickets in future. However it’s not something I would do ever! 3 pound may not be important to her and so she may think it’s not important to you. Who knows? She’s your friend and you know her better than us.

Lzsutty

If you’re in a position to afford to regularly go to concerts, you’re in a position to forego £3 here and there. Stop getting worked up about very small amounts of money when you’re happy to spend over £50 on tickets every time.

lharri09

I’d tell them that you’ve received an amount but it’s not the right amount and reiterate the amount due. My friends and I would never do this to each other. I’m generally the ticket booker and I’ll tell them exactly how much they owe me and they always pay the exact amount. 

Groom

I can't believe why anyone would think it acceptable to round down rather than pay the correct amount or round up.  Next time, just e-mail her and say "The tickets cost £106, so that's £53 each. Please would you transfer £53 into my bank" That way you have told her twice how much she owes you. If she ignores that and rounds down, I would stop buying the tickets and either ask her to get the next ones or find someone else to go with. 

SaaSee

I would round up the price  then let her know, if she  had an issue that hopefully a useful  discussion could then follow. 

MalMonroe

"I've a new friend that I go to concerts with. I usually book the tickets, then send her the booking confirmation with the cost. But when she pays me back, she rounds down the amount - so if her ticket cost £53, she'll transfer me £50. While individually they're small amounts, it's starting to add up. Should I mention it - I don't want to jeopardise this friendship, as I rely on her as my concert companion?"

Yes, do mention it. I'd also ask her to book the tickets instead and then I'd pay her back exactly what she paid. That would be a better arrangement, don't you think? Sometimes when you book tickets you have to pay a booking fee, too. Your 'friend' is on to a good thing here.

You don't need a friend to go to concerts with. Where I live we have weekly Friday concerts for six months of the year and I often go alone. Once you've been to a concert on your own, you get used to it and I much prefer it, to be honest. It's not as if you can sit there having a good gab over a cup of tea with a pal - you're there to listen to the music.

Friends like this you don't need. You say she's new, so it appears that you can make friends quite nicely. Dump this one and do your own thing. You can do it on your own. It's not as scary as you might think.

MalMonroe

Chris_Jay said:

I had a friend who would do that to me, and initially I let it go, as she's a pensioner, until I began to notice that she could always afford weekly visits to the hairdresser, to have her hair washed and set, and a manicure every three weeks. I can't afford those things, and I became very unhappy about it, and, I'm ashamed to admit, rather resentful. I'm also a pensioner. When the final straw happened, I didn't handle it well and the friendship died on the spot. Hindsight is a wonderful thing... Is your friend doing anything similar, to your knowledge? You say she's a new friend - is that because she's new to the area or workplace, or because she didn't move in your circle until recently?
As has been said already, the small amounts do add up, and concerts and shows aren't a cheap night out. I suggest you weigh up how long you can subsidise her before you get too resentful to have the conversation in a calm fashion. And you do need to have the conversation! Please don't do what I did! It's deeply distressing all round.
I'd also reiterate comments above - find a new friend, or group, to go with, and also go by yourself. It's actually a very good way to meet people who share your tastes.
Good luck 😃

I'm also a pensioner - and it is really no excuse for not paying your full whack. I would never dream of trying to take advantage of anyone in that way. You were obviously pushed to your limit and felt that you couldn't mention how you felt before something happened. It's a common occurrence. It happens and you shouldn't feel guilty about it. Some friendships weren't really meant to be - I have been friends with people who have taken advantage of me in the past and those friendships haven't lasted. 

I agree with you, it's no problem for me to go to concerts alone. I was nervous the first time but once I got used to it I found it wasn't so bad. I would rather go alone than miss a concert or show I really wanted to see.

Spendless

I had this recently. A friends had 2 free tickets to an event. She asked me to go. I transferred half of the rail fare to her, then she asked if I could lend a fiver more because she'd done into her overdraft and couldn't buy the tickets. I did. Then a rail strike was announced for that day we couldn't go, she got a full refund and gave me half back, forgetting that I'd sent her an additional £5
I let it go for various reasons, I had no wish to embarrass her, she has had money problems for a long time, whereas I'm in a better financial situation. She's been a very good friend of mine for over 40 years. The difference I see here is your friend keeps doing it. I would just text her the amount it is rather rather than just sending her the receipt. 'Bought 2 tickets to see ..... £25 each plus booking fee of  3.00 so £53 total  making it so £26.50 each , could you please transfer  .your £26.50  into my bank account usual way. Cheers, looking forward to going.