From: robin_listas@es.invalid   
      
   On 2025-11-26 11:54, Cindy Hamilton wrote:   
   > On 2025-11-26, Carlos E.R.  wrote:   
   >> On 2025-11-26 01:25, Ed P wrote:   
   >>> On 11/25/2025 7:03 PM, Carlos E.R. wrote:   
   >>>> On 2025-11-25 22:28, Ed P wrote:   
   >>>>> On 11/25/2025 1:45 PM, Carlos E.R. wrote:   
   >>>>>> On 2025-11-25 03:16, Ed P wrote:   
   >>>>>>> Couple of weeks ago there was discussion of dishwashers.  I   
   >>>>>>> mentioned mine failed the night before leaving for a couple of   
   >>>>>>> weeks.  It is a 7 year old GE that does a good job so worth fixing.   
   >>>>>>> I called Mike, the appliance guy while away so he could come today.   
   >>>>>>>   
   >>>>>>> I could have done the job after watching a video.  My guess for   
   >>>>>>> time would be about an hour+ for the repair, plus time getting the   
   >>>>>>> part. Mike said it is a common failure and he has probably done a   
   >>>>>>> hundred of them and carries a couple of the circuit boards with   
   >>>>>>> him. It was amazing to watch him do the job in about 20 minutes.   
   >>>>>>> remove lower panel, removed door, disassemble door, remove circuit   
   >>>>>>> board, then reverse.   
   >>>>>>>   
   >>>>>>> Cash price $280.   
   >>>>>>   
   >>>>>> Do you know how much was "work" and how much the components? These   
   >>>>>> things are still much cheaper on my corner of the world, often the   
   >>>>>> replacements boards are too expensive, not the workmanship.   
   >>>>>>   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>> Labor was $99   
   >>>>> Part and tax $204   
   >>>>> Credit card total $303.   
   >>>>> Cash price $280.   
   >>>>   
   >>>> Ah, ok, so labour was not that exorbitant. The part was expensive. But   
   >>>> now I am curious about some other thing: they charge differently with   
   >>>> credit card than with cash?   
   >>>>   
   >>>   
   >>> Seriously?  If you pay with a credit card, they pay about 3% fee, and   
   >>> there is a record of the transaction.  As a business, you report it, pay   
   >>> various taxes on the income, both business and personal.   
   >>   
   >> Well, I know that the cost for the merchant is different, but it is   
   >> forbidden to charge differently. It is usually written in the contract   
   >> with the bank.   
   >   
   > Small contractors will often accept a discounted payment for cash,   
   > which they need not report as income.  That's illegal, of course,   
   > but it's a problem only if they get caught.   
      
   I have not seen that type of trick here. The price is the same in cash   
   or with plastic. The plastic companies get very angry otherwise, and   
   someone will tell them (because they have to pay more).   
      
   What indeed happens instead is not paying the VAT, and that means the   
   transaction has to be done in cash and without a fully legal invoice. In   
   this case it is the government who is seem as scammed, and everybody   
   likes to cheat on the government.   
      
   Which is a reason some countries seek to prohibit cash transactions.   
   Here cash transactions are limited to less than 1000€.   
      
      
   --   
   Cheers, Carlos.   
   ES🇪🇸, EU🇪🇺;   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
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