OVERPAID INVESTOR.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LV, Issue 246, 14 September 1935, Page 11

OVERPAID INVESTOR.

REFUND TO RACING CLUB. A patron of the Marton Jockey Club's meeting on Saturday last brought appreciable relief to (he totalizator supervisor when he called on Monday and handed over a doulile-liguro sum, stating that it was an overpaid dividend which he had received when collecting on winning tickets after the last lace on Saturday (says an exchange). The totalisator stall at Marton on Saturday, when the spring meeting of the Marton Jockey Club was held, handled altogether close on £6OOO, of which amount some £SOOO was handled by the paying out staff. The concluding event, the Farewell Hack Hundaicap, resulted in the largest pool of the day, the amount invested being £1031,, arid well-backed horses Idled the placings. Bodyline, the winner, was fourth in order of favouritism, and the dividend shared in by his supporters was just a little over four times as large as that returned by Grand Score, whose supporters lost a small portion of their investments.. Wlion the staff balanced up their cash, after paying out dividends, it was discovered that an error had been made. It was apparent that an investor on Grand Score had been paid a dividend at the same rate as if it had boon on Bcdylinc. A pleasing sequel to this followed on Monday afternoon, when the secretary received a visit from a resident of Feilding, whoso first inquiry was: “How did your totalisator account come out on Saturday?” When informed that an error had been made the visitor informed the secret*uy that Jic was "in a position to supply the explanation and make 117) the deficit. “I had a good day on Saturday, he said. “I reckoned that I had won about £l7 and naturally I celebrated the occasion with a few friends at my home. 'Hie following morning my wife asked me how much I had really won. I told her that it was about £l7/ Then I drew up a statement of my betting account and also counted the money which I had. 1 discovered that I had about £l2 too much, and it was when 1 counted the still unbroken roll received after the last race that I had an inkling as to what had happened. I had £5 on Grand Score and £1 on Bodylino. and the amount in ■the roll was over £2O, instead of just under £9."

The investor then decided to motor to Marton on Monday and the result was his visit to the secretary, with whom he worked out. the dividends to which lie was entitled. This amount was found to ne £H 16s less than the total received, whereupon the investor handed over the excess to the sccre-

iarv. The sportsmanlike action of a patron who was prepared to lose a day s work and make the journey from Feilding to Marton to make good the chib’s loss was all the n.ore appreciated by those concerned in the incident.