# Is dropping change on the ground at drive-thrus an urban myth? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 1, 2015, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682 "2015-01-01T15:59:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/41 "2015-01-02T01:21:36Z")
FTR, I didn’t vote in the poll because a suitable option wasn’t provided. Since you are apparently the only person to have ever heard of these stories, they can’t even be urban legends. They’re just stuff you’re making up. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/42 "2015-01-02T01:22:33Z")
I don’t know the exact source. I read a thousand news stories a year. Weird facts get stuck in my head. It may have only been one news story about pennies. Maybe it is BS. I made a point to make that the first option in the poll. I just know that I read it somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/43 "2015-01-02T01:23:38Z")
It’s very rare that I use cash these days. If I do, I leave anything less than a quarter on the counter. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/44 "2015-01-02T02:38:47Z")
> [@TBG](#): > > I agree it’s dumb to just throw out change and all, but if you have bums or winos hanging out anywhere where you might possibly get change, you should probably move. If you live in a city you’re gonna have homeless people begging for money, no avoiding it. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/45 "2015-01-02T02:45:17Z")
I have dropped pennies. They can’t be used for parking and sometimes I just don’t want to fumble them into my pocket. Other change can hit the cup holder for when I need them. But pennies are just a pain. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/46 "2015-01-02T02:48:31Z")
Just the other day I had a homeless guy behind me in the drivethru at McDonald’s. They actually took his order after his turn came up and he walked up to the ordering display. After he ordered, he just stood there behind my car in the drivethru line, as if he were the next vehicle. But it was just him. T’was weird. The inside wasn’t even closed. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/47 "2015-01-02T02:50:22Z")
> [@kopek](#): > > I have dropped pennies. They can’t be used for parking and sometimes I just don’t want to fumble them into my pocket. Other change can hit the cup holder for when I need them. But pennies are just a pain. Of course, until they are abolished, having a few pennies in pocket (up to four per purchase) keeps you from collecting/discarding _more_ pennies. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/48 "2015-01-02T03:25:31Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Just the other day I had a homeless guy behind me in the drivethru at McDonald’s. They actually took his order after his turn came up and he walked up to the ordering display. After he ordered, he just stood there behind my car in the drivethru line, as if he were the next vehicle. But it was just him. T’was weird. The inside wasn’t even closed. Don’t ask me why or how they even know but apparently some fast food places ban homeless people from ordering inside or demand they leave. Once at a Whataburger in Houston while in a long drive through line two homeless people approached and asked if I could order for them as they weren’t allowed inside and weren’t allowed to use the drive through, there was no visible sign they were homeless. I agreed and they gave me the money and told me what to order for them. At the window the clerk when handing me the food told me I’m not allowed to order for people not in the car, and if I do it again I’m banned from ordering.:dubious: Guess they saw me take the money from them on a camera. Handed the people their food and change and never went to that location again. ---
**Author:** ![Svejk\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@Svejk\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svejk_1)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/49 "2015-01-02T04:48:44Z")
If it’s just banal, tedious shit like this, it can’t be the stuff off legend, urban or otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/50 "2015-01-02T05:00:47Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I don’t know the exact source. I read a thousand news stories a year. Weird facts get stuck in my head. It may have only been one news story about pennies. Maybe it is BS. I made a point to make that the first option in the poll. I just know that I read it somewhere. You said in your OP you “keep hearing” these stories. Can’t you recall and point us to even one? ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/51 "2015-01-02T05:26:01Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > You said in your OP you “keep hearing” these stories. Can’t you recall and point us to even one? If I had to guess, I would say The Daily Mail. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/52 "2015-01-02T05:27:25Z")
> [@Accidental\_Martyr](#): > > If I had to guess, I would say The Daily Mail. Good point. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/53 "2015-01-02T05:34:23Z")
> [@Accidental\_Martyr](#): > > If I had to guess, I would say The Daily Mail. Man I didn’t believe Brits at first when they would say any story from the DM can instantly be dismissed as at best a lie, but I believe it now from reading it! Imagine FOX news and the most crazy reactionary emails sent by your rabidly tea party relatives, put into a blender with a gallon of crazy added, and you’ve got the Daily Fail. They could have a headline like: PROUD PATRIOT GRANDFATHER STARVED TO DEATH BY IMMIGRANT! And the story will be about an old guy being told by an employee of the grocery that that they aren’t open yet to come back in an hour. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/54 "2015-01-02T06:01:05Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I don’t know the exact source. I read a thousand news stories a year. Weird facts get stuck in my head. It may have only been one news story about pennies. Maybe it is BS. I made a point to make that the first option in the poll. I just know that I read it somewhere. _That’s our Ace!_ tm :o. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/55 "2015-01-02T08:46:58Z")
I’ve skimmed the thread, but are some of you saying you don’t believe people throw pennies in the trash? The young people in my town most definitely do. I know because they miss, and I’m a compulsive coin-picker-upper (hey, if one penny is good luck, I got 67p some days, how much luck must that gather me? 😛 ) We’ve got different coins here in Scotland, but I regularly find 1p, 2p and 5p coins near bins and bus stops. One bin I often find coins near, is also next to a strip where the taxis park when they’re waiting for calls, and the wife of a taxi driver tells me they just tend to throw copper coins (1s and 2s) and small change out their window when they’re sorting their earnings. I’ve never seen them do it, but the amount of coinage, including 10p and 20ps I find along this stretch of road makes me believe her. No real cite, apart from [personal experience](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=679721). ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/56 "2015-01-02T13:32:26Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Ah, okay. That makes more sense! Does it?😕 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/57 "2015-01-02T13:41:13Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Its not easy keeping up with what the younger generation does these days. I agree. It was all much easier pre-Segway. ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/58 "2015-01-02T14:34:26Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Canada got rid of pennies. No cataclysm was apparent. Yeah, in 2012. [Australia did it in 1992.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_cent_coin_%28Australian%29) ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/59 "2015-01-02T14:59:13Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Does it?😕 Doesn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682/60 "2015-01-02T15:19:32Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > Of course, until they are abolished, having a few pennies in pocket (up to four per purchase) keeps you from collecting/discarding _more_ pennies. I’m more likely to use/discard them in the “take/leave cup” at a walk-up situation than pocket them. Which is why I will sometimes do a drop in drive-through. To undo the belt, pocket a couple pennies, reconnect the belt, and stick it back into first just isn’t worth a couple cents to me. I would rather they just kept them. \ Oh Lord – I’m turning Canadian!!! 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dropping-change-on-the-ground-at-drive-thrus-an-urban-myth/708682.md?page=4)