What’s the stingiest thing you’ve ever seen a friend do?

[zappp]

I have an (ex-)friend who is very stingy. She earns plenty and is happy to splurge on herself and show off, but when it comes to others, she is mean with money to the point where I’ve felt really taken advantage of on multiple occasions. It’s almost like it’s a game for her; seeing how little she can pay and how much she can extract from others.

The friendship fizzled out when I started calling her out on it and stopped covering her costs (I previously didn’t want to make things awkward, especially in a group setting, but it got to a point where I was too pissed off to keep being polite).

Against my better judgment, I recently attended a group dinner that she was also part of - a mutual friend was in town and this was the only time we could see her. In the WhatsApp planning group, she’d enthusiastically agreed to the restaurant choice - it was definitely a nicer place, but not extravagant.

When she got there, she claimed she wasn’t hungry and didn’t order any food, only to ask the waiter for an empty plate and help herself - rather generously - from everyone else’s food!!! She also asked for a glass for the wine we’d already ordered, which would’ve been fine, except guess how much she chipped in to the bill…? Exactly, zero.

It was also a bit embarrassing towards the restaurant; it’s hard to get a reservation and the group was small enough that it was strange for one person not to be eating at peak dinner time, especially as we were seated at a big table.

This time I didn’t even bother calling her out - it was so brazen that she basically called herself out.

I know you never truly know someone else’s financial situation, but she’s certainly spending enough on clothes, holidays, and skincare to make me think she could afford a plate of pasta and glass of wine…

Anyway, rant over, I want to hear other stingy stories!

I think it was adding on of the 13p…

The water container trick strikes me as particularly stupid, as he will be paying more in petrol to drive a heavier car than he will save!

This thread has triggered some memories….

A relative used to charge people at work to read his newspaper, so basically made a profit every day.

Same relative would take up invitations for days out to theme parks etc, then sneak off with just their child to get an ice cream, food, drinks etc then when the other family bought stuff, would take it for himself and his child.

@Rockandgrohl
Yeah that’s tight. I would definitely have to say something. Just “ you do the first round as you want the posh coke”. Casually.
Cheeky mare.

…and you let her???

I had an elderly multimillionaire relative who refused to buy himself a new bed or heat his giant house. So he got himself a sleeping bag and slept on the floor of his front room. He did that for probably 20 years. I don’t think he ever even replaced the sleeping bag.

Wow, that's as subtle as a steam roller! Did she somehow think that saying "Your treat?" was a clever, euphemistic way to get away with it without you noticing - a bit like when you say "Well, I'd better let you go" to people after a while instead of "That's enough of you, now go away!" ?

It's astonishingly rude. I'm in whatever the opposite of awe is at how very little self-respect she must have and how little she must care about her reputation - all for the sake of a free coffee or two.

I only put enough water in the kettle for the amount of teas I am making. Anymore is a waste of electricity, it mounts up over time.
Sensible, not stingy!!

I gained a mutual friend through my mate. We used to go round for coffees and chats.
We decided one night to get an Indian takeaway, which was 2 doors down from the mutual friend. She ordered herself 2 starters, a large main, several extras and two 2ltr bottles of pop. She had two kids, a girl who was around 4 and a boy of 6. She asked them what they wanted, then proceeded to tell them they could have a chapati each and chips to share as she didn't have the money to get them the pizza they wanted! She then also paid for delivery - from 2 doors down!!!
Same woman, we were at my friends house and decided to get a KFC. Sorted the order and I drove my mate to go get it (a couple of miles away and they didn't deliver back then).
Got back, gave her the huge bucket, chips and extras she'd ordered (and paid for, but still...) She gave the kids a small bag of chips each and scoffed the rest herself. Me and my mate felt awful and ended up sharing our (much smaller) meals with her kids!
The sad thing us, her kids weren't fussy eaters, they pretty much ate anything, so waste wouldn't have been an issue at all.
She was tight unless it came to her own needs.
We weren't friends for long. Especially when I said I needed to nip up to the loo, while I was there and she told me I didn't have to bother going to the trouble of going upstairs, as she had a "piss" bucket in the kitchen because she couldn't be arsed going upstairs herself! I'd seen the bucket, with a teatowel over it, but didn't know it was full of piss! 🤮

Someone i know was on the phone the other day when I turned up at their home.
It transpired that they were trying to claim a refund of £3 overcharged on the bus last week. Not only did they want the refund (which was very quickly agreed and actioned) but compensation for their inconvenience.
After over an hour on the phone arguing they wanted compensation, I asked how much they expected, but they said "anything, it's principle".
The bus company wasn't falling for it, saying this person had double-tapped their card so it was their own fault.
I walked out after just over an hour and they were still there demanding compensation and wanting to complain about the fact that no-one would give them any.

This person will take up the mantle against anyone, anytime, always demanding compensation for inconvenience. When it's not forthcoming, they'll start on the 'vulnerable, disabled adult of colour' bandwagon, and will eventually get everything they want.

They recently managed to blag 32 hours of 'personal care' funding from the council. They do have a very minor issue with the fingers on one hand hand, but otherwise, they are perfectly capable of doing everything they need to do. The boyfriend is logged as the 'carer', but does nothing physical for them, the council pays the full amount for these hours (£406.72/week), and the boyfriend gives this person half of the cash, despite them being on benefits and not actually entitled to a fraction of what they've conned out of this country's taxpayers.

I've had many arguments with them about this and their attitude is that "people like you (me, a law abiding citizen) are stupid". My latest retort was "so, you say that law abiding citizens are stupid, does that mean that criminals are the sensible ones?". Their answer was a very emphatic "Yes!".

I had 3 ‘friends’ that i met on holiday and had subsequent holidays with. 2 Russians and a NI. Final holiday they all pretended they couldn’t use apps and the hotel needed restaurants booked by apps. I ended up subsidising them through the whole holiday and tbh none of them were particularly nice or I wouldn’t have minded. Anyway. No longer friends. They also had appalling views which i discovered.

My.dad never would by easter egg as a bar of chocolate is cheaper. Thankfully to Grandma got a easter egg haha

I remember that one - I think the group of friends even paid for their children to go on a trip abroad or something really big. Then they gave their children a massive 6 figure sum at 18. They stopped the group doing nice stuff all along.

The battery thing is psychopathic!

My cousin in aus would turn the engine off on his automatic car when we came to hills like that for the same reason.

Got invited to our nieces 21st birthday meal, about 20ish of us. All the family had buy one get one free vouchers, so all ordered steaks and split them futher between their kids aged 7 to 12. My 4 year old, husband and I were left out. After, we walked back to neices house via the shop as they said they needed alcohol for the after gathering, picked up allsorts and then expected me to pay. I bought one bottle of wine, shared with hubby and then we left the gathering, they had 3 beers in the fridge.
They regularly expected us to pay for stuff, or deliberately under cater. I have learnt now not to take loads of stuff round with us, they will run out and then suggest we pop to the shop to replenish supplies. Should also state, they drink like fishes! I have many more stories, mostly around wine!

Last christmas we were invited to a buffet at my SIL, 17 of us. Buffet consisted of, a jar of olives, 9 jacket spuds, salad, block of cheddar and some butter, about 50 mince pies and a vienetta.

I may sound ungrateful, but they take, take, take and after 30 years I am done.

True, but in her case you’d be fair to charge the actual petrol cost, not more so that she was making a profit? That’s the unfair bit

cant beat these but my mate used to take the car out of gear when he went downhill to save petrol ( opinions vary as to whether this actually works and pretty sure it’s not v safe)

This was quite a common “hack” back in the day. I think watching the pennies was more common generally.

A small group of women at a pub quiz night. They were regulars and I was filling a vacancy. It was £2 each for the quiz. We all paid up. Then I said I was going to the bar and were we doing rounds. No. They wanted tap water please.
Everyone knows pubs put on a quiz to get a bit of trade on their quiet nights. I said something about having to get a drink if we were there all night and they said they had already paid to be there.
I was so embarrassed to ask for a beer and three tap waters. Had two more beers that night and had to put up with their jokes about me being a drunk. So miserable and tight.

I had a company credit card and picked up the tab for an office lunch in an expensive restaurant. I also handled all staff expenses and was quite surprised the next day when a perennially dodgy colleague presented me with an expense claim for the lunch I'd just paid for. It wasn't even a proper receipt, but he used a till roll with the food list from another table. I didn't point he hadn't even presented a proper receipt but suggested the restaurant had fraudulently double charged us and that we should involve the police. Boy did he back down in a hurry! Offered to go back to the restaurant and 'sort it out ' and get a 'refund' for the meal they'd charged him for. Interestingly this all took place in front of the company owner who was quietly taking mental notes

That's just one occasion, there were many others. Old boy network is alive and well!!!

Its weird as we used to be the opposite - if we held a party and people brought booze we'd always tell them to take any leftovers with them.. I used to hate having half drunk bottles or collections of booze i'd never drink left in the fridge.

Half drunk bottles of wine fair enough. Full, unopened bottles i would see as rude

Even if it was something you'd never drink yourself? So much easier to get everyone to take whatever was left at the end home with them (apart from anything i'd provided.. they'd have a fight on their hands then 😂)

I think we may have gone to that one (or a similar one)....CSP?
They asked DH to pay, rather than me and I pointed out that it was my 40th a month ago which was free. We haven't seen them since.

Years ago I attended a hen party, organised by the sister of the bride. It was already an expensive weekend, but the sister had bought and made some small cheap props. She then invoiced us for them all, taking into consideration any materials and her time given.

The following morning we all went out for breakfast and the mother of the bride was also there. She then insisted that everyone gave £3 each to cover the cost of the maid of honour's (i.e. her daughter) breakfast as a thank you for her hard work. We had already paid for the bride's food (her other daughter). She then went around demanding that we all gave her another £2 so that she could buy her daughter a bunch of flowers to thank her for organising her own sister's hen do! I ignored the request and pretended not to have heard, despite it repeatedly being brought up. I just couldn't believe how tight she was and how unnecessary it all seemed.