Robbing from Tesco with impunity *edited by MNHQ*

I don't think this is a new behaviour at all but obviously gets worse in a cost of living crisis.

I wouldn't expect shop assistants to challenge or run after people- perhaps security but only if they are not outnumbered. Tesco either have to pay enough security guards or pay the police to be there at certain times of day.

I was in co op earlier and a man pinched a cardboard tray of baby food, he looked me dead in the eye and I said I would pay for them for him and he just scarpered. I didn’t mention it at all. I’ve seen baby formula in security tags before, and occasionally in the smaller shops it may even be behind the counter. It’s an incredibly sad state of affairs.

But even though I made that comment I agree with you. It's not ME that has a sense of entitlement. I don't my kids designer stuff and give them all sorts just because it's the latest trend amongst influencers or footballers or whatever. My kids know that if they want that stuff they need to go out and earn the money for it. But they are also privileged in that they have a decent family behind them who has equipped them with a moral compass. They are also academic and hard workers who will no doubt get a decent job after university, so if they WANT the Nike stuff they could buy it legitimately. Doubt they would go for that type of thing though because we don't glorify it or buy it.

But kids without the privileges that mine have had, with a chaotic family background, maybe struggling academically at school, surrounded by relatives and friends who don't work or see the point of it, they are still bombarded daily by this status symbol shit and want it for themselves because then at least it would give them some kind of feeling of having "made it", even if the rest of their lives are fucked up. Only now we have structured society so that it really is very hard for some people to ever work their way out of poverty. And THIS is where you get this entitled behaviour: I want that, I can't ever have it legitimately, so I'm just going to take it.

How you change society so that materialism and capitalism is less of a thing I don't know.

How in hell have we got to this state of affairs in this country?

A lot of the blame has to lay on the shoulders of the two generations who have overseen the transition from a supposedly "respectful and community minded" society to one that is selfish and entitled.

The tories have obviously had a huge part to play too. Fostering inequalities, creating division, and decimating public services so that people are poorer, unhealthier, and more desperate than ever, while simultaneously ensuring there's no one there to pick up the pieces or address the underlying issues.

But this is ultimately what the public asked for (or at least let happen).

If you are going in and stealing all the meat in the shop you are part of an organised crime syndicate. Even if it’s just locally run it’s organised crime.

The problem with keeping some undesirable people out of the shop by whatever method is that if they can’t go in to rob, they’ll just rob those coming out with trolleys full.

Yes, they might get some things that they can’t sell on, but the average person with a big trolley is likely to have bought some meat, alcohol, cheese. Maybe they will start targeting women coming out of shops who look like they might be buying baby formula. I’d rather have people steal from shops than rob me personally. Of course it would be preferable to stop the crime altogether.

We saw a woman stealing all the beef joints in Lidl. She couldn't carry them all and kept dropping them. I felt a bit resentful as we can't afford a beef joint at all.

We have the same at our local Sainsbury’s (a mini one) in our also northern very nice town. People stealing all the meat off the shelves in plain daylight. The staff just shrug.
I worry about the gang aspect though - another local shop has women coming and stealing baby formula etc, and at first they let her go as they thought "oh poor woman", but shes stealing it on behalf of some men who stand outside the shop.

It makes you wonder if they're doing this deliberately. Would partly account for the vastly inflated prices as well. They can't all be down to Brexit and the weather.

Yep. I guess a supermarket chain might setup a sub brand for "sub prime" customers, that you are allowed to just walk into.

The prices would have to be high to compensate for deterring shoplifting and the general inconvenience of serving poor people!

We really don't want to get to that point but maybe with the hands off approach to shoplifting this is what supermarkets want.

Definitely not the case in our local Tesco, I was shocked one day to walk past the make up aisle where two women in burkas stood looking at the make up with a female worker stood 2 foot away from them with her arms crossed watching them. She didn't say a word to them just watched them and made sure they knew she was watching.

Only those with a high enough social credit score will be allowed to access shops. They'll be allowed to keep certain types of people away.

I think you’ll find the small traders will no longer be there.

I wasn't arguing society isn't breaking down.

Amazon are doing it for automation reasons with the benefit bad customers/thieves are excluded.

I would prefer this not to happen which is why shoplifting should be addressed.

You might end up with a situation with only the best customers can use Tesco etc. which offers the cheapest best quality food. Everyone else has to use a rip off small trader, who puts up with bad customers because they can charge a high profit margin.

Paid* well enough

The police aren't even kid well enough to deal with this shit, let alone the staff at Tesco, who didn't sign up to deal with this shit.

A JoJo Maman in a neighbouring (well to do) area had to close because of the constant theft. Gangs of women would come in, grab handfuls of clothing, and walk out. Staff (also women) too terrified to challenge.

Crazy.

This is what the government wants ultimately, so they're not bothered. It's social engineering.

No, they just keep coming back. There's nobody who can stop them. The police officer said they're doing it regularly and didn't seem to think there was anything anyone could do. We've had a resident community arsonist for five years and they can't do anything about him either apparently. Shoplifting isn't a reason to call the police out unless it turns violent.

I have seen they are experimenting with automated shops.

I guess you could say this is a good thing if you are a well behaved person.

But you might end up with older people, people with learning disabilities, people without bank accounts etc. Who can't use shops.

It would be better to just tackle crime/ antisocial beyond shops now, rather than give good grounds for this to be implemented.

So shops become fortresses in essence and people want to argue that societal breakdown isn’t happening?!

I do feel you are over thinking it. The average Ned doesn’t think that big.

Your average Ned doesn't think - it's what makes them a Ned.

However, I think. Or try my best. And right now I think there is fuck all point in trying to uphold the law - or help uphold it - when the people that make the fucking laws not only can't be bothered to uphold it but insult what little intelligence I have by trying to gaslight me into submission.

I wouldn't be challenging a morally questionable character with nothing to lose either.

What happens if they are banned from the shop and try reentry (assuming they are local). Do the police assist then?

Some branches of Aldi already have that I believe.