I shouted at the pharmacy staff today and I feel really shit about it

[lboogy]

I went to boots to buy some lemsip and calpol for me D.C. and DH who are sick with cold.

The rule about not selling more than 2 paracetamol items applies. I've got 2 packs of lemsip, calpol and one pack of cold and flu tablets. Fine. In the past the staff just do 2 transactions.

I get to the till which is long. They call another member of staff to help out. Lady on the beauty counter tells me to come to her for service. Scans the calpol and lemsip and says I can't buy anything else since I've exceeded my 2 paracetamol limit. I said just split the transaction in 2. She says no she can't do that. If I want more than 2, I need to go to the pharmacy. I said if I left the store or even left the queue and came back I'd be able to buy those items again. She's like, I don't make the rules.

Fuming, I walk to the pharmacy. Pharmacist isn't there. Waited for 7 minutes. Even more annoyed I go back to the original queue. New staff says can't buy more than 2. I politely asked her to do 2 transactions. Nope, can't do she says. Before I know it, I'm shouting at her about this ridiculous rule and how I've now been in 3 different queues / tills trying to buy some bloody lemsip.

Anyway, she refuses to serve me. Walks off😡

Now new staff at the till: I said I'll pay for these 2 lemsip and re queue. I paid and walked back to the pharmacy with my 2 other lemsips where the pharmacist or possibly manager is serving. She said she was really sorry the staff are allowed to split the transaction. She doesn't know why they didn't. At this point I started crying - I guess being ill and the stupid staff not using their brain plus finally being validated set me off.

Anyway, now I'm gone and I feel really shit for shouting at the staff. I remember being on the texting end of terrible customers and it's awful. I want to go back and apologise to the staff member but at the same time I'm pissed that 3 different people lacked the ability to use their brain over some bloody lemsip!

OP do go back and apologise, it’s the right thing all round

It’s very easy to OD on Paracetamol, can lead to a horrible death. Rules are there to protect customers. Just apologise.

She shouldn't have split the transactions, they're not meant to. The other 3 staff were 100% correct. The manager basically sh*t on her staff just to appease you and avoid a similar blocking from you. A poor show on her part also. I would always have my staffs backs.

Sorry but your behaviour was terrible. You never know what people are going through and being treated/spoken to like that could be the straw that breaks the camels back for some people. Do the right thing, go back and apologise.

Rude customers used to result in my sensitive daughter phoning me in tears after work. Next time you are in if you see the staff you shouted at an apology would go a long way.

I know it’s tough when you don’t feel well, hope you are all better soon.

Glad you realised you'd been unreasonable at the end of your post.

Rules are rules, unfortunately. Thing is, these members of staff don't know if you're a mystery shopper, a regular customer or someone addicted to substances. If you were a mystery shopper, she'd probably have lost her job over it, similarly if someone had overdosed and it came out that protocol hadn't been followed. It's annoying but it's not fair putting staff in that situation.

I recently got ID'd for buying alcohol. I'm over 25 and have a baby, who was with me. I had to just drive home, get my ID and drive back with my baby because I'd forgotten it. It was annoying but there was no point shouting at the girl because they have a Challenge 25 policy.

It sucks but at least you acknowledge that you were in the wrong. Don't worry about it. I'm sure she gave off about you to her colleagues afterwards so just take that as her 'revenge' if you will, and let it go. And maybe avoid that shop for a few months until they forget your face and be extra polite next time .

Why on Earth would you be allowed to split the transaction? That's not my reading of the policy at all.

I think the way you behaved was very unfair towards the store staff. I would hope that you are mortified now about it all.

@EmmiJay

"Why are you apologising to the staff?? I most likely would and have acted like you did. YANBU imo. Hope you all feel better soon!"

Genuine question as I'm honestly curious; why do you feel that it's acceptable to speak to people like that? Would you like to be spoken to like that?

Is the Harvest Moon tomorrow bringing the worst out in people already? Seriously, why apologise when you clearly aren't sorry or you wouldn't be calling them stupid.

I wouldn't beat yourself up about it. I work in Savers, a discount health and beauty store and we have to abide by that rule too. I, myself, am happy to split the transactions but you will find others that won't, these are the ones with sticks up their butt. We don't get in trouble if we sell more than the recommended sale and the till doesn't even do anything if we carry on putting them through. It's just one of those things, finding the nice employees in the store I'm afraid. We hate this daft rule as much as you though, considering you can be prescribed a box of like 50 from the GP.
So don't feel bad, I'm sure you're one of many who had a gripe about that we just let it go over our heAd. I hope you all feel better soon x

As if people who actually wanted to overdose would choose to live because they were forced to buy their paracetamol in a couple different shops.

Research shows that it’s been very effective actually (someone’s probably already told you this as I’m only on page 1 of 7

you could have got some Ibuprofen and 2 paracetamol products instead.

Not necessarily. Computer said no when I tried to buy two boxes of paracetamol and a box of ibuprofen in Sainsbury’s. I pointed out that you can safely take ibuprofen with paracetamol but that’s just how the system is set up. It wasn’t a huge inconvenience.

Aren't the rules around paracetamol to help suicide prevention? They're there for a reason and asking someone to break them is unfair and unreasonable. I too think an apology is warranted.

As PP have said it's also about accidental overdoses. A surprising number of people don't realise that paracetamol is one of the active ingredients in lemsip and so risk overdosing. And honestly OP, you could just have bought one packet in one queue and, if you thought they could split the transaction, have queued again. Then if they said no that time at least you'd have had one pack.

I'd have a think about what else is stressing you out at the moment, because this is a highly stressed response to something actually quite trivial.

I'm pissed that 3 different people lacked the ability to use their brain over some bloody lemsip!
Shitty attitude. You’re not sorry at all- you’re still all riled up about the situation and still pissed off. Don’t bother going back because you’ll only kick off again. Leave them to it, you’ve probably ruined their day enough

I can't believe that people have read the thread and seen how effective this rule has been in reducing suicides and accidental overdoses and they still say it is a stupid rule.

The paracetamol limit is there to minimise the risk of suicide. People will try to kill themselves or make a cry for help not realising that paracetamol OD destroys your liver. I have nursed a couple of men who had only meant it to be a cry for help then died slowly of liver failure. It was heartbreaking.

Oh gosh some people on here need to take a chill pill.
OP I understand where you are coming from. I tried buying 3 lots of nurofen once for my husband (to have home after having surgery) and I couldn’t. It was frustrating but went to another shop and bought the third box.
You must have been really tired and stressed which is understandable. Sometimes if staff isn’t sure they should bring a manager to help. I think the majority on here are being quite judgemental.
Hope you and your family are feeling better x

These are the rules as written in Medicines, Ethics and Practice:

PARACETAMOL
Not more than 100 non effervescent* tablets
or capsules can be sold to a person at any one time. Since most OTC pack sizes are for
16 or 32 dose units, this means that, in practice, 96 is the maximum number that can be sold.

However it is difficult when patients are buying different formulations - sachets, liquids, tablets etc so we will set our own limitations within our Standard Operating Procedures and this is what Boots will have done. Staff have to follow the SOPs - I certainly wouldn't want to be the pharmacist stood in a Coroners Court explaining why I had disregarded the protocol set by the Pharmacy Superintendent in the event that a patient had died.

Sometimes if staff isn’t sure they should bring a manager to help.

But the staff were sure, and were 100% correct, so why the need for a manager?

Please go back and apologise @lboogy. I worked in Boots twenty years ago and still remember the shittier customers like you. Even got a hair dryer thrown at me one day.

lovedarkchocolate “Oh gosh some people on here need to take a chill pill”

I need several daily but have you tried getting hold of that amount? 😂

steeper there are also guidelines stating not to sell more than two packs at a time, that’s where most shop policies have cone from.

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/824548/Appendix_4_-_Blue_Guide.pdf

@Dyrne - OP said “She said she was really sorry the staff are allowed to split the transaction. She doesn't know why they didn't.” - so obviously staff are allowed to split the transaction

Boots policy is definitely not to split the transaction. Whilst you might get away with it at a small branch with a lax manager, it would normally be gross misconduct.