We have the so called public market where goods are cheaper than the supermarket. Sometimes we call it the poor man’s market because it has no amenities like the supermarket which has air-conditioning and the area is clean. Anyway, shoppers in the public market are cautioned to be aware of defective weighing scales. It is a common practice by scamming vendors to cheat by 20% in the weight of their merchandise. So if you are buying 1 kilo of chicken drumstick, you may only get 0.8 of a kilo but you pay for 1 kilo. That is one reason why we patronize the same vendor because we are treated as customers and given protection from defective weighing scales.
In our market, there is a public weighing scale which could be used by daily shoppers to check the right weight of their purchases. If there is a discrepancy, they could complain to the nearest complaint desk which is also located in the market. It is easy for the victims to direct their complaint about the problem on the correct weight of their items bought.
I suggest people going to local markets where vendors use defective weighing scales to carry a hand held scale which is a small unit with a hook in front. That will solve your problem. It is a small gas lighter sized instrument that you can carry easily. Once a few customers carry these scales and catch these cheats they will immediately mend their ways.
This is a very common problem and Ray has given a good solution. This is what we do when we buy things at doorsteps. Otherwise I check the weight they use in open markets because not infrequently have I noticed that they exchange weights too.
My wife is probably is the champion of this art. She has kept a portable weighing scale near the main gate and checks every item mostly vegetable and fruits in front of the seller. So they dare not cheat her. Some neighboring ladies also come to our place to get their purchased items checked. Most of the vendors know that they will be caught if they tried anything like that in our area.
Defective weighing scales and underhanded tactics are what's keeping me away from patronizing what @Alexandoy calls public market. I make most purchases at supermarkets or popular meat shops because meat products are actually cheaper on these stores. I only go to the open market to buy fish which isn't often. While many stalls in the open market now use digital scales, the vendors still manage or attempt to defraud market goers by typing a higher price per unit on their scales. Many customers don't realize this at all as the machine/scale doesn't produce a print out. I've gotten tired of pointing this thing out to vendors and to the unwitting customers who would have been victimized. Thankfully, there's a standard weighing scale on both ends of the public market so one can easily check the weight. However, I still find it stressful to get back to the vendors and ask them to give me what's due.
I would suggest taking your own scale or only purchasing meat in shops that have a self-weight NON-ELECTRICAL weight scale. This way, you can check if the weight is correct or if the scale is not tampered with by weighing other things you definitely know the weight of. I always weigh meat on the fruit weight scales at stores. I forgive them if it's off by a little.
