Does my friend have to pay for candy he inadvertently was not charged for?

[DTSMA68]

My friend likes to buy candy in bulk. This morning he went to a well-known grocery store in the area and bought three pumpkins, soda, and a bag of bulk candies – a handful. The candies are sold by weight. When he got to work, he ate them. He usually records the weight of the candy because he likes to keep a food log. When he went to look at the receipt, he noticed that the candies were not on the receipt and therefore could not record the weight in the food log. Should he go back to the grocery store and explain the situation and offer a monetary sum like $4?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

Does he have to? No. The amount was trivial and the incident was the result of an error that was not his fault and did not come to his attention until he’d already left the store. Should he? Well, I’d say yes. Not because of a moral obligation, but because it is a kind thing to do that may lift the spirits of people who must deal with petty thieves every day and would appreciate knowing that some people out there care about honesty. Rather than go to the trouble of returning to the store though, he could write a brief letter of explanation and enclose it with the payment and a copy of the receipt, and send it to the attention of the store manager.