To expect to be able to make a purchase at closing time.

[NK493efc93X1277dd3d6d4]

I was in Laura Ashley today just before closing looking to buy a picture, The assistant showed me the display item which was still marked up at full price and then went over to the tills to check the sale price for me.

Yes I'd like to buy it I replied - only to be told that sorry you can't do that today as the tills are closed now. I checked my phone, bang on 6pm, closing time. I queried this as I have never come across this before. I have been in plenty of shops that advise customers to go to the tills at closing time, but none who refuse to make a sale on the dot of closing.

I said as much to the assistant who looked apologetic and consulted senior assistant. The tills close themselves down at 6pm she advised me. if you want to buy it you'll have to come back in the morning. Don't worry the sale is on until Monday.

Is it unreasonable to expect to complete a purchase when I am already in the shop at closing time?

Retail workers: you do realise you're not the only people who sometimes work more than their contracted hours, right??

I worked in the hospital and now I work in Mental Health and yep, I often have to work a bit longer than my contracted hours. If I'm in the middle of helping someone I don't tell them I have to stop what I'm doing right now and leave because I won't get paid for the extra 10 minutes or so I have to stay on.

It's what happens when you work with people. But then I love my job and don't have a chip on my shoulder about the people who make it possible for me to have the job I'm in.

I am sure people who do not deal with people face to face have to stay longer than their contracted hours. It's just a part of working life.

Some retail workers here have massive chips on their shoulders. If they work for shitty companies that isn't the customers fault. If a customer is abusing you and treating you like shit you have every right to feel pissed off. But a customer expecting to be served at closing time when they are already with the sale assistant and haven't been warned beforehand? Your problem is not with them.

Although I appreciate that it might be better if the OP had been told that the till switches off at 6pm

What difference would it have made

ortensia - please do clarify. I can't wait to hear it
So you went back to read my post, as I suggested, and still need clarification starsheartsanddiamonds I don't think so

I thought you couldn't wouldn't, Ortensia it's nice being proved right.

Childish much. You didn't say so though, so you haven't proved anything at all, unfortunately, starsandheartsanddiamonds. When you have a real point to make, do let me know,

"What's inconsiderate is to rub salt in the wound by saying "what a pity" it is that we have to be there, when the REASON we have to be there is because YOU are there."

Surely the opposite is true? The customer is only there because the shop is open! Who would bother visiting shops on Bank Holidays otherwise?!

The Op asked if they were being unreasonable for expecting to make a purchase at closing time.
It was obviously after closing time when she attempted to purchase it as the tills had gone offline.
The Op is being entitled and very unreasonable : shop on line or during store hours FFS

Op the clarification makes it sound lole you walked in the shop at 5.55pm.

I think YABU, but then I work in retail. shrugs

When you can offer a clarification like you said you could, ortensia, let me know. On second thought - don't. I haven't got all millennium

Do give it a rest, starsandheartsanddiamonds. You're starting to sound unhinged now. As I said, when you have a real point to make, do let me know, or do you need further clarification on that also...

It's what happens when you work with people. But then I love my job and don't have a chip on my shoulder about the people who make it possible for me to have the job I'm in.

How condescending. I work in retail and I don't have a chip on my shoulder but that doesn't mean I have to just accept that I will be forced to stay late, unpaid, at the whim of a customer who can't tell the time and not get annoyed when they feel entitled to ignore the clearly posted opening hours. If it happens occasionally then that's life, but when it happens regularly (as in a few times a week every week) it starts to grate.

In the last week I have had to stay an extra 3 hours over my contracted hours which is a fairly average amount of unpaid overtime for me to do in a week. If that happens every week for a year that's 156 hours extra I work for no pay. Even at minimum wage that's over £1000 worth of work that I'm not getting paid for because it's "just" 5/10/15 minutes here and there. With an extra £1k a year I could take my DD on a great holiday abroad or pay for all the extra curriculars she wants to do or have a bit more money at the end of the month for treats or any number of other things.

If a customer is still in my store past closing because of a very good reason - such as a disability that means they take longer to complete their shop and they have taken longer than usual today or because they have an emergency situation and have rushed in for one or two items, I am more than happy to wait for them.

If a customer comes in 5 minutes before closing time, spends 10 minutes just browsing and only then comes up to the checkout with their (non-essential) purchases - despite being told when they entered that we closed in 5 minutes and there were other announcements - then I am going to be annoyed and in some cases won't be able to serve you even if I want to because the computer system has already locked off for the night.

I work in retail, I work at a retail park our shop closes at 8pm. Our sister shops that are based on the high street close at 6. Just a thought, that maybe the shops in the shopping centre surrounding LA also close at 6, because that's what the shopping centre rules are? Our tills close on time for many reasons, one being that the close of business, just as you are locking the doors it becomes a high risk for robbery. The days takings are all there before cash up and locking up in the safes. Curious to know, that if the picture hadn't been on sale, would the OP still have brought it? (If she could've of course! )

I was in Laura Ashley today just before closing looking to buy a picture The assistant showed me the display item which was still marked up at full price and then went over to the tills to check the sale price for me.
Yes I'd like to buy it I replied - only to be told that sorry you can't do that today as the tills are closed now. I checked my phone, bang on 6pm, closing time. I knew exactly what I wanted when I entered the store
You must have cut that very fine in terms of time. Yabu

Our shop doesn't announce we are about to close

We are not supposed to approach customers to tell them...we do but we are not supposed to

Maybe they can't scan after 6. Pretty sure on the alcohol sales in Scotland, the tills just won't scan alcohol after a certain time. (feel free to correct me if i am wrong)

Ortensia - take the last word with my compliments. I can see you really need it

Isn't that what you're trying to have

OP was in the wrong, yes, and I would think it incredibly dim to go in 'at the last minute 'just before closing' not to keep an eye on the time and then be surprised you weren't able to complete purchase. She knew the closing time and took her chances by going in just before.

Starzig I'm not 100% sure if the tills stop allowing it but it's illegal after a certain time here so i've never heard of anyone trying to put it through. There's definitely no allowances for customers with shit time management being 'just a minute after the cut off' and still wanting their buckfast xx

I've already said this and more, over the course of my posts, hence the reluctance to clarify for you personally.

I used to work in a supermarket and couldn't stand it when people couldn't be bothered to make sure that they had checked out and paid buy closing time. I then had to stay over and I had my daughter to collect from my childminder. Also I wouldn't get paid any overtime if I clocked out before 13past. So if I stayed 10 mins over - sometimes a few days a week - I wouldn't get paid it because we were absolutely not allowed to hover around the clocking machine.
Now I'm a retail manager elsewhere and I will not serve anyone at closing time. It's the time the customer needs to vacate the premises and we lock the doors. If I stay an extra 5 mins every day then I'm losing a lot of money because it soon adds up and it isn't fair on my employees either.

Agree with ortensia post of 19.37

OP chanced her arm and in most shops this would not have been a problem...unfortunately in LA the tills close themselves (wish ours bloody did )

Although to be fair we had a customer who ran in like a bat out of hell at 7.55pm

Picked up a dress and raced to the changing room. Dress went through the till at 8.01

Another customer came in at the same time on another day got a selection of clothes and spent 20 minutes trying them on . Staff left 30 minutes late that day

If the assistant had pointed out it was nearly closing time at the beginning then it would have been reasonable to close on the dot. I have noticed on the few occasions I am in a store near closing time there is an announcement beforehand.

Incidentally on a Sunday a large store could be breaking the law if they accepted a sale after closing time, as they in a way would have been open for more than 6 hours.