Memorandum on Packaging Charge Inspection
Packaging charge inspection describes the ritual of examining a restaurant receipt line by line to locate the charge for bags, containers, or packaging materials added at checkout.
CLASSIFICATION NOTICE
Subject: Packaging Charge Inspection (PCI)
Classification Level: Routine Mandatory
Effective Date: Whenever the receipt becomes visible
Purpose
This notice establishes the classification of packaging charge inspection as a mandatory routine behavior triggered by the appearance of an itemized receipt from any food delivery platform. The purpose of the inspection is to locate the line item designated as a packaging fee, container charge, bag fee, or similar descriptor, and to note its presence.
What the Inspection Involves
The inspection involves scrolling to the bottom of the receipt. The bottom of the receipt is where the itemized fees appear below the subtotal and above the total. The packaging charge is between fifteen and thirty-five cents, which is an amount too small to dispute and too visible to ignore.
The charge is located. Nothing is done about it.
Classification Rationale
The packaging charge inspection is classified as routine mandatory because it occurs without deliberate initiation. It is not decided upon. The receipt appears. The scroll to the fee section follows without a conscious instruction to scroll there. The classification acknowledges this automaticity rather than treating the inspection as an active choice.
The Absurdity on Record
The absurdity on record is as follows: the same user who will spend four minutes locating and noting a twenty-cent packaging charge will not spend four minutes reviewing the delivery fee, the service fee, the small order fee, or the suggested tip percentage, all of which are orders of magnitude larger and are equally visible on the same receipt.
The packaging charge receives a disproportionate inspection. The fees that surround it receive a glance. The inspection ratio has no logical basis that this notice has been able to identify.
Recommended Action
No recommended action. The charge is a cost of the transaction. The inspection is a cost of having access to itemized receipts. Both costs are accepted.
This notice is filed for classification purposes only.