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Original poster

Scanning error in supermarket - conundrum

169 replies

Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 12:35

Just idly wondering about people's opinions on something that happened the other day...

Lately every bloody time I've been to the supermarket there has been an annoying time-wasting issue such as discounts advertised on the shelf not registering at the checkout (so I had to go and check, and take picture of the ticket price), the self-service machine playing up and objecting to every item I tried to scan (so I kept having to call over the assistant) - the usual irritating nonsense.

The last time I went, a few days ago, I just had a couple of items to pick up and did self-scan on my phone. One of the items (a bottle of orange juice) scanned as a totally different item (a bottle of washing liquid) even though I had been nowhere near the aisle with laundry products.

I'm afraid I thought, fuck this, I am not wasting yet more of my time because the supermarket wants to save money by getting its customers to take on the job of scanning and checking out products but can't get it to work properly. So I paid for the two items which I had scanned and went on my merry way, having saved about a pound.

Am I a terrible thief who deserves to burn in hell and eat out-of-date value pork pies for the rest of eternity, or would you have done the same thing?

OP posts:
Original poster
Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:39

fashionqueen0123 · 27/10/2024 13:36

If it’s an expensive item you like I’d go back and get some more.

Haha! I didn't think of that.

OP posts:
OonaStubbs · 27/10/2024 13:37

You should get a discount on your shopping if you use self-scan, I would say 10% would be fair.

Original poster
Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:37

purplebeansprouts · 27/10/2024 13:24

Ahh scan and shop? That's absolutely fine then. The system has scanned it and they have all their controls in place. Even if it had been spot checked all that would happen is it would beep and say you'd paid for it. They'll realise when their stock doesn't quite match up

Show quote history

That's good then.

OP posts:
fashionqueen0123 · 27/10/2024 13:36

If it’s an expensive item you like I’d go back and get some more.

Gowlett · 27/10/2024 13:35

Totally fine. Just payback for the times they’ve ripped you off with deals not scanning etc… It all works out equal in the end.

Allthehorsesintheworld · 27/10/2024 13:34

I would have done the same and I’m usually very honest. But I ache too bloody much to keep sorting out a supermarket’s issues.
When you have a spare £1 put something in the food bank if that helps.

QueenCamilla · 27/10/2024 13:33

Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:15

What's particularly annoying about this is that often you have bought multiple items of a product, or a more expensive brand, precisely because there is an offer (which is obviously the incentive the supermarket intends) and then you don't get the discount.

The more cynical side of me wonders whether this is even programmed (or rather not programmed) intentionally.

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Someone who works in a supermarket explained why this situation occurs - it's usually an expired offer still sitting on the shelf edge.
But I suppose all-knowing conspiracy theories feel better than listening to some lowly shop worker.

It's also strange how I don't tend to stumble upon offers that won't go through. Must be the very diligent promo change workers in my supermarket who are doing their job very well!
And I must be very proficient with self-checkouts as the only items I tend to encounter an issue with are those that are too light to register on the scales.
Though I think I'm the odd one out - most people faff it all up and stand there looking surprised.

widelegenes · 27/10/2024 13:33

As an aside, I didn't know you could use your phone to scan your shopping.
I must have a look.

Original poster
Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:32

DangerMouseAndPenfoldx · 27/10/2024 13:12

If it makes you feel any better, I had similar a couple of weeks ago.

I picked up a birthday cake that should have been £14. It scanned at £4.50. I waited (for ages) for the assistant to come and sort it out. He seemed quite irritated at me for highlighting it and then said he could discount it but couldn’t make it more expensive so gave me the choice of taking it for that price or leaving it in the shop.

I hope you took it and enjoyed it!

OP posts:
widelegenes · 27/10/2024 13:31

ssd · 27/10/2024 12:43

These things are very annoying but please don't blame the shop staff, they have to put up with rubbish equipment and people complaining.

She's not blaming the shop staff. She said "because the supermarket wants to save money".

Original poster
Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:31

claracluck1978 · 27/10/2024 13:23

I think some staff as as annnoyed by the glitches as customers at some of the issues

Our local supermarket has replaced all but one of the checkouts with self service and the checkout is closed at 6.30 leaving one person on the dozen or so self checkouts.

We went in at 6.45 on Tuesday night and they had just 'yellow stickered' their shelves. Alongside the £50 or so of shopping we had about a dozen items all reduced. The self scanner didn't like them. When the staff member came over she said she'd had enough that day of the problems with the system, and put all of the reduced food through for free for us. It was about £30 or so. Now, I'm obvs not complaining but I feel very sorry for the staff. Just how bad must it be dealing with issues like this, being moamed at and constantly having to apologise for the stores owners reducing staff and making just shopping 5 x harder every single time.

OP I don't blame you for taking the shopping as you did!

Yes, it must be soul-destroying, but so long as shareholders and the CEO etc. benefit then who cares about the people on minimum wage - or the actual customers?!

OP posts:
Original poster
Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:29

Thevelvelletes · 27/10/2024 12:56

Was it Asda by any chance they've had issues with their scanning system on main checkouts since Friday.

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No, it was the orange one.

OP posts:
Growlybear83 · 27/10/2024 13:28

Of course the vast majority of people would have done the same as you. I doubt that I'd have even noticed that an item scanned as something else.

Original poster
Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:27

ladyofshertonabbas · 27/10/2024 13:26

What was the price difference? Pennies, surely?

About a quid, maybe £1.50.

OP posts:
Original poster
Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:26

DivergentTris · 27/10/2024 13:21

This, it's all fine and well saying you wanted them but then you don't want to walk to the other end of the store or hang around to get scanning issues sorted. You can't have it both ways OP, you're not 6 anymore.

Either deal with crap self-service properly or don't, this is a valid choice, not the above which frankly just sounds stroppy at best.

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I can't have it both ways? What, that I should be able to scan an item and expect it to appear correctly in my basket without having to exchange it, check/prove the discount or summon someone for assistance? Um, okay.

If there are scanning issues (which arise because the store is trying to save money) it should not automatically be the customer who suffers either in terms of financial penalty or by suffering delay and inconvenience.

Sorry if that sounds entitled or sanctimonious, but I go into a supermarket for one reason only, and that isn't to have a fun day out solving a load of irritating problems because of faulty equipment or errors in programming.

OP posts:
ladyofshertonabbas · 27/10/2024 13:26

What was the price difference? Pennies, surely?

GhostCicada · 27/10/2024 13:25

I scanned something the other day, I cant remember what but it came up as something else. I noticed it, noticed the price was 2 something thought that that sounded about right for the item that I had scanned and moved on. I just presumed that the wrong name was inputted somewhere along the line. I've no idea if I paid the correct price or not and I don't really care.

purplebeansprouts · 27/10/2024 13:24

Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:22

I scanned it on my phone, so the weight wasn't registered. It just came up as a totally unrelated item (not, say, a different flavour or fruit juice). Quite bizarre actually - perhaps something like one number of a code being different.

No person (apart from me) was involved, so no-one had to override anything.

Show quote history

Ahh scan and shop? That's absolutely fine then. The system has scanned it and they have all their controls in place. Even if it had been spot checked all that would happen is it would beep and say you'd paid for it. They'll realise when their stock doesn't quite match up

claracluck1978 · 27/10/2024 13:23

I think some staff as as annnoyed by the glitches as customers at some of the issues

Our local supermarket has replaced all but one of the checkouts with self service and the checkout is closed at 6.30 leaving one person on the dozen or so self checkouts.

We went in at 6.45 on Tuesday night and they had just 'yellow stickered' their shelves. Alongside the £50 or so of shopping we had about a dozen items all reduced. The self scanner didn't like them. When the staff member came over she said she'd had enough that day of the problems with the system, and put all of the reduced food through for free for us. It was about £30 or so. Now, I'm obvs not complaining but I feel very sorry for the staff. Just how bad must it be dealing with issues like this, being moamed at and constantly having to apologise for the stores owners reducing staff and making just shopping 5 x harder every single time.

OP I don't blame you for taking the shopping as you did!

TulipCat · 27/10/2024 13:23

I can't be bothered correcting low value shopping errors, whether it's in my favour or against. If it involves a long queue, a return visit, a lengthy wait on hold on the phone or a fussy website, I just don't want the hassle.

Oldraver · 27/10/2024 13:23

I think it's a swings and roundabout thing

I was using self scan in Sainsburys last night, picked up a pork joint but changed my mind and got a different one so deleted the first one

Now for some reason when you scan Nectar price meat on the handset it says £14.07, £ 14.01 Nectar price but adjusts at the till
So I checked through on the till to make sure it had been charged correctly only to find the original item wasnt deleted...£15's worth. I wonder how many times this happens

purplebeansprouts · 27/10/2024 13:22

Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:18

Oh no, this never happens with shop assistants, doctors' receptionists etc. Never ever. (Not that I blame them - I'm sure it can get tiring and boring working in a supermarket.)

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Still don't think it's their fault. They're being asked to supervise a machine for no extra pay

Original poster
Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:22

Vroomfondleswaistcoat · 27/10/2024 13:15

The thing is (I run the self serve tills from the kiosk, we don't have enough staff to man the self serves AND the kiosk, so I'm doing it all from back there), if you put something on through the till and it scans as something else, the scales will register an error. Unless the two items are EXACTLY the same weight, an error message will have gone off on your till. Did the red light flash, OP? If not, then it may be that the item has incorrectly been entered on the system (which is the supermarket's fault, and it will be happening every time someone scans the item). If it did, but you still managed to pay, it means the person supervising the self serve tills pressed the 'over ride' button to cancel the error message from the scale telling them that the item was 'wrong' in some way. Which happens, on average, about once every twenty bloody seconds. So they overrode it. So still not your fault.

If you were able to pay for the wrong item, someone, somewhere, knows. And hopefully will be putting the issue right. Not your problem.

I scanned it on my phone, so the weight wasn't registered. It just came up as a totally unrelated item (not, say, a different flavour or fruit juice). Quite bizarre actually - perhaps something like one number of a code being different.

No person (apart from me) was involved, so no-one had to override anything.

OP posts:
DivergentTris · 27/10/2024 13:21

takealettermsjones · 27/10/2024 13:06

There is some ethnical gymnastics here I'm not going to lie 😂

If you don't like the concept of self scanners then don't use them!

This, it's all fine and well saying you wanted them but then you don't want to walk to the other end of the store or hang around to get scanning issues sorted. You can't have it both ways OP, you're not 6 anymore.

Either deal with crap self-service properly or don't, this is a valid choice, not the above which frankly just sounds stroppy at best.

Shopassistant · 27/10/2024 13:21

Scannerscammer · 27/10/2024 13:12

Are you obliged to do that by law, or is it just a policy of where you work?

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I don’t think it’s the law. It’s something we’ve always done because it’s good customer service. If you go to the checkout thinking you’re paying £1 for a chocolate bar, and the cashier ask for £1.50, even if it’s only 50p difference, it gets your back up a bit, doesn’t it? We’d rather lose a bit of profit, own our mistake (and correct them), and have the customer more likely to come back to us 🤷‍♀️