Due to issues with Bon Appétit’s receipts, meal plan points disappeared for many students
(-- The Beacon)
By Natalie Wheeler Staff Writer wheelern12@up.edu
Changes to Bon Appétit's accounts caused a drop in many meal plan balances, according to general manager of Bon Appétit Kirk Mustain.
Mustain said the money is still on students' accounts, and Bon Appétit is currently working out the problem.
"Those points are in a different tender, so we're looking to get those back on the receipts," Mustain said.
The issue stemmed from extra points Bon Appétit adds to students' meal plans.
According to Mustain, Bon Appétit includes extra points at no charge on meal plans two, three and four – adding $62.50, $150 and $250 respectively – to reward students who buy larger meal plans.
Mustain said the company recently had to put those extra points in a separate account for auditing purposes, which caused them to vanish from the balances shown on receipts.
Bon Appétit is currently working out how to show the extra money as a separate balance on students' receipts, according to Mustain.
Although the points have not actually disappeared, students with meals plans were confused by the mysterious drop in their balances.
"I noticed it because I was trying to find out how I went through 200 points in a day," freshman Anthony Lynch said. "I had bought one thing that day so it didn't make sense."
Hall directors responded to students' worries by explaining that the hidden points were still on their accounts.
"My understanding is that the point total remains exactly the same but now you will see two balances instead of one on your printed receipt," Fields Hall director Megan Rosenberger said in an email to her residents.
Although reassured that the money was still included on their meal plans, many students such as junior Rob Cagan, wished they had gotten a clearer explanation for the disappearance of their points.
"I had not heard enough about it," Cagan said. "It wasn't ever explained to us why they did it."
Despite the confusion, Mustain said the issue will be resolved as soon as possible.
"We're working with the people who manage the big ID system to put those amounts back on," Mustain said. "(The money) is still there."
(-- The Beacon)
