Borrowed an amount and wants to repay a bit more because of change
Question
Shalom,
A person borrowed 97 shekels from his friend and wants to return 100 shekels because he does not want to get involved with making change. Is this permitted?
Answer
Shalom u’vracha,
There are several details in this halacha, and it is best that he give him the extra amount as a deposit, on condition that the first money he gives to charity will count as the return of that deposit.
Source
There is much to examine in a case where it is impossible to make change and he can pay either more or less than the exact amount of the debt: whether, as a matter of law, he has an obligation to pay the full hundred so that he can thereby discharge his debt, or whether, since he cannot pay his debt precisely, he has no obligation to pay more in order to fulfill repayment of the debt. And one can bring an example of this from the words of the Rashash on Bava Kamma 7b, who proves from the Gemara that if the damager has land of the highest quality (idit) that is worth more than what he is obligated to give, or land of lesser quality, he gives the lesser, for he is not obligated to give the better in order to fulfill his obligation. And it requires investigation whether one can learn from this also with regard to paying more or less in value.
And the words of the Raavad in Tamim De'im, siman 60, are well known, where he wrote that if someone owes a lender and is uncertain how much, he can give the larger amount that he might owe him, since he is obligated under the law of Heaven. And further examination is needed: even if in human courts we would say that it is impossible to obligate him to pay the full hundred in order to discharge his debt, perhaps under the law of Heaven there is an obligation; and even if we say that under the law of Heaven as well he is not obligated to pay the full hundred, perhaps we may learn from the Raavad's words the principle that what a person pays in order to fulfill his obligation to pay the principal, even though he is not obligated in this, is not considered interest but part of the principal. And this requires further analysis. And in any case, even if we permit it, one must examine the case where it is possible to make change but people are lax because of the small amount of the change, whether this will be included in the heter or not.
