Business and Dealings

Q: When a customer returns an item that got damaged while in his possession after he bought it, do we have to give him a full refund or can we deduct the amount of the damage?

Q: Is it permissible for the lessor to charge the lessee a rental based on his turnover in the case where they fix a ceiling for the maximum rental and they are both pleased with this type of agreement? Some people say that it is permissible, even though the rental is not fixed. They compare this to the case where one hires a rep to sell one’s merchandise and pays him a commission based on the sales he does. Just as his wage is not fixed, but is determined through his total sales, similarly determining the rental of a leased property through the turnover should be permissible. Is this view correct?

Q: I work in a department store, and as part of the job we are obliged to encourage customers to get a store card, which is a credit card, and if they do, to open accounts for them. I too have to sign their contracts which states they must pay interest if they miss or fail to make their payment on time. What is the ruling on credit cards, and is this work permissible?

Q: Is custom duty at airports permissible? My son is planing to ask someone to bring two laptops from US to Saudia.

Q: I want to start the business with my friend. We live in India. I want to have clarification with following points

1. Can I start a business by taking loan based on interest?

2. If above thing is not possible then is it OK if my partners take loan and I restrain from it?

3. Is it ok if I work in their (my partners firm) which takes loans and take my share of profit as employee?

I wanted to have clarification because in any way the firm in which I am working currently has taken loan from banks for its functioning.

Q: Is it permissible to charge money for teaching the knowledge of Deen? For example, can teachers teach the Quraan Majeed to kids and charge money for it?

Q: I read the fatwa regarding rental based on percentage of turnover being impermissible. I would like to query further that in the case where the landlord fixes a maximum amount for the rental, so that in the event of the turnover being a very large amount, the rental will not surpass the ceiling that has been fixed for the rental, will the ruling change in anyway? Most commercial properties work in this way and many tenants request this type of an agreement and are pleased with it.

Q: I am in great trouble. My aunt has brought a box of sweets which some non Muslim has given us on the occasion of Diwali (non-Muslim festival). I did no know about it. So I have taken sweets from it and when I took one sweet from it my mind struck that this might have came on the occasion of Diwali and when I asked her, she told me yes this is on the occasion of Diwali. So I got confused how to get rid of it so I made a plan that I will take one bite of it to show other family members that I have eaten it and after spitting all the sweets which I had taken I felt that very little part of it went inside my throat which I was not able to remove. So my question is have I done kufr or shirk. Believe me, I didn't want to eat that sweet but since I have taken that sweet so I was afraid that if I reject this sweet in front of other family members, they start pinching me. I love Allah very much and also want to be free from shirk, bidat and haram things.

Q: Please advise if it is permissible to work in a shop partially selling musical instruments (on condition when one can not find any other suitable job)?

Q: Your answer on installing an ATM refers : "since it is possible for one to withdraw interest bearing loans through this medium, it will not be permissible to install an ATM on one’s premises as one will be aiding in the sin of riba (interest)."

Question: 1) Will it not fall in the category of having a dual purpose as it is possible to withdraw halaal savings also. The property owner cannot be responsible for someone that uses the ATM for a wrong purpose similar to the sale of grapes?

2) If the illat is "the possibility of withdrawing interest bearing loans" then till point credit card machines should also be impermissible as a person whose account is already in overdraft is in fact paying by using "interest bearing loans " irrespective of using the budget or straight option of payment.