'every single cent that is being paid as surplus will be regarded as Riba,' Can you clarify in the following situation?

Question ID: 
1923
mbt***@intnet.mu asks:

Question

Assalamoualaikoum

I quote from the Question 1915

'every single cent that is being paid as surplus will be regarded as Riba,' Can you clarify in the following situation?

A. The school Bus driver came to collect the transport fees for the month of Dec 2019 - a service that he did not provide. The payment for Dec was a condition when he started to provide the service in Jan. As the driver only has this income, he says that we must pay as this is the only income he has. What happens in this context.

B. As he provided a very good service, over and above the fees payable, we gave him some more Rs as a gift.
What we did is ok or not?

Jazakallah

Answer

Walaikum salaam wa rahmatullah,

A. The wordings of a transaction is very important in determining the correctness of that transaction. Also, in the case of hiring, the period of time and the fees must be specified. For example, I'm hiring you to take my kids to school on every school days for a yearly salary of x rupees which will be payable on a monthly basis. In this case you will b liable to pay him every month including December. However, if it was on a pay as you travel basis, then you are not liable to pay him for the extra. Since, apparently, the transaction wasn't clear, we suggest you can come to a compromise with him in terms of the fees.

B. The extra you gave him is totally correct as it will be considered as a gift.

And Allah knows best,

Answered and approved by:
Our panel of Muftis
Jamiat ul ulama of Mauritius