Do Kids Still Need Math?

Perhaps there are some little boys out there who like money but hate math.  Maybe they think that because we have computers now we don't need to know how to add and subtract.  Maybe this letter I had to write one of my (very computerized and normally flawless) suppliers tonight will help encourage them.  I'm reaping the rewards of having parents who loved math and loved teaching it to me.

Hi ______ and team,

Thank you for the great work you do keeping me apprized of the charges on my account.  I wish all my suppliers had their accounting data so easy to access and understand.  

Recently you issued a large refund to my credit card for some credits that had been accumulating over the last few months.  You also included a separate sheet explaining that you had accidentally refunded some charges in error – they were already paid – so you charged me again for these amounts.  You were correct that I had already paid these charges, but you were incorrect to then charge me again for them; the amounts of the invoices had already been deducted from my large refund, so actually you should have refunded them to me.

I have to kind of stand on my head and then do a somersault to understand this, but let’s see if I can explain to you how you have charged me three times for these two invoices.

Invoice 1613313.001 was deducted from my refund on 3/13/14 for $47.25

Invoice 1615744.001 was deducted from my refund on 3/13/14 for $78.25.

In other words, my refund would have been $1078.69, but these two invoices lowered the refund to $953.19.  So in effect, you charged me for these two invoices.

Then the next day…

Invoice 1613313.001 was charged to my card on 3/14/14 for $47.25

Invoice 1615744.001 was charged to my card on 3/14/14 for $78.25.

Then on 3/18/14, you discovered your mistake…

But instead of refunding $125.50 to my card, you charged my card $125.50.  

So now I have paid three times, and I need you to refund two of the times (a total of $251.00) to my card.

I hope this makes sense.  Let me know if you have any questions.