Q: I would like to find out the following:
If one has to sell electricity from a vending machine, the service provider gives you a discount of 1, 5% on the sale of the electricity. Can one charge a customer and additional 5% on the sale of the electricity {e.g.: a customer comes to buy electricity from you for R20-00 but you charge him R21-00 for the sale. On the customer’s slip they will see that they have only purchased electricity for R20-00.) The cost incurred by me is that I will have to pay the cash deposit fee of about 1%, a monthly unit rental fee of about R150 per month. Is it permissible to do this type of a sale?
A: It is permissible.
وَأَحَلَّ اللَّـهُ الْبَيْعَ وَحَرَّمَ الرِّبَا ﴿البقرة: ٢٧٥﴾
Answered by:
Mufti Ebrahim Salejee (Isipingo Beach)