Meaning
Blatant, shameless overcharging; extortion so open that those responsible make no attempt to conceal it. Chiefly British and informal, typically an exclamation of outrage at prices rather than an accusation of actual crime. Informal and strong; reserved for prices seen as outrageous rather than merely high. Regional use: British English (understood elsewhere).
Origin
The much-repeated derivation from the British window tax of 1696, under which householders bricked up windows to lighten their bills and so supposedly 'robbed' rooms of daylight, is folk etymology. The tax itself was real and bricked-up openings still survive, but not one print use of the phrase from the tax's 155-year life has been found linking the two; The Phrase Finder notes that the theory does not stand up, and the Wikipedia article on the window tax states there is no scholarly support for it. The documented record instead begins with literal 'day-light robberies' contrasted with midnight murders in the Monthly Review (1804), and the first overcharging sense appears in Temple Bar (1863), where being charged one shilling sixpence for candles is called 'daylight robbery'. The figurative sense most likely rests simply on the image of robbery committed brazenly in broad daylight, but the true origin is unknown.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- absolute daylight robbery
- daylight robbery, pure and simple
- sheer daylight robbery
- that's daylight robbery
Usage Examples
- Twelve pounds for a sandwich and a bottle of water? That's daylight robbery.
- Residents called the new parking charges daylight robbery and refused to pay them.
- The reviewer condemned the resort's automatic service charge as daylight robbery.