AIBU to think that self service tills are horrible

[uglyflowers]

In my area there used to be lots of individual shops and a sense of community. Then they built a massive Tesco which put all the little shops out of business. But local jobs were promised instead. Then those staff members’ hours were cut so many were part time and had their living boosted by benefits. And now they are being replaced by machines. Near me they are trialling two completely self service supermarkets. So eventually all the poor bloody ‘key workers’ who risked their health during Covid and who pay income tax etc will be replaced with machines.
And what about shops as community hubs? Can’t be the local library for that since they closed ours down. So those people who are a bit lonely won’t even get their two minutes of chat.
Additionally I don’t WANT to scan my big shops. I like someone doing it. They get paid to do it. I don’t.
I think everyone should boycott them. They won’t use them if we refuse to.

I dislike them and refuse to use them. The price of groceries are constantly increasing, and I don't see why I should have to scan and pack them as well as pay more. I also would far rather interact with an actual person, and I think it's wrong that people are losing their jobs due to things like this. Don't even get me started on automated phone messages!!!!

@user1493423934 - do we go to the same supermarket? I don't even know why the one here has an express checkout, it's so rarely open.

YABU. I love self service tills and think all shops should have them; the more they do the better and I am more likely to shop in places with them.

It's been a rare occasion that I have used a self-checkout without requiring assistance. I get so mad at myself when I have to call someone over! I'm glad to see I'm not the only socially awkward person who is hoping to avoid having to talk to the checkout person. It's possible there are more of you in the UK than here in the states because I definitely feel the odd one out here.

Seriously, I was at a Target (do you have those in the UK) and the older woman checkout person was making comments about my purchases for ex. "Oh, a 5 lb of sugar, are you going to bake cookies?" FFS it's none of her business what I'm planning to do with my sugar! But then I say "No, I use it in my coffee." And she says "Oh, really? You use real sugar in your coffee?" And then I feel all judged, like should I not be using sugar in my coffee? Why is this person commenting on sugar in my coffee? Does she think I'm diabetic? Does she think I'm overweight? I was making plans to complain to her manager about how inappropriate and intrusive her comments about the sugar were but then decided I'd look stupid complaining when the woman was probably just trying to be friendly. But just let me buy my sugar and leave me alone!

I think part of me loves Aldi because of how fast they do check out and I don't have to tell them paper or plastic and they take Apple Pay and my life is not judged.

I always end up shouting at them. It’s the constant “please check your bagging area” that really winds me up. On many occasions I’ve shouted “I’ve checked my fucking bagging area!!!!!” at the bloody things although if you do that it’s guaranteed that an assistant will come over. I then have to say “I’m sorry but this bitch is really pissing me off” and in general they completely understand! How they listen to it all day without setting about the checkouts with a sledgehammer is beyond me.

@TroysMammy

I went to Matalan the other day and if I'd known they had self service tills I wouldn't have bothered buying anything. There was a slot for hangers and another for security tags. It took me twice as long than an experienced cashier. I won't be going back there in a hurry.

Yes! I was totally when I visited mine in October. I was trying to scan a puffy jacket, speak to my mum on the phone, wear a mask (which was cutting off my lower vision? Why do they do that?), bag the jacket! Then when I toddled out the shop alarms went off because I hadn't taken the tag off! I was expected to take the bloody security tag off ffs! That's when I seen staff. They'd been ghosts before that. No one at tills helping. No one managing the shop Utterly ridiculous. Supermarket I'm getting used to but retail? Wtf.

I much prefer self-service. I have 2 shops equidistant from me and always go to the one with self-service.

Hate them. They are so frustrating. I also tend to answer back when it's particularly pissing me off...
I've located the mute button which helps with some of it.

Just wish I could go to an actual check out, rather than be barked at by a person saying 'that one is free!' I can see but didn't want to barge past everyone else and their trolleys...or you.

Then proceed to have to wait 5 mins for the assistant to come and approve your alcohol, as heaven forbid tesco allow babysitting the self checkouts to be a job in itself, so the assistant is otherwise enthralled with sorting out security boxes. If you use the assistance button, naturally it freezes up the till rather than allow you to carry on while said assistant sorts out security tabs.

Oh, and there's security tabs on their bags for life, so you can't even get packing until they've come over. And there's rarely any plastic bags there.

Matalan are particularly annoying having quite literally turned round their employee tills, with a minor software update. There's no real space for your basket, so you have a pile of scanned/unscanned clothes. I take the hangers out of protest. I dont want them particularly but if they wanted them back they should have scanned my shopping. I only buy a few bits, I'd dread to have to scan £200 of kids clothes by myself.

I love self service. As pp have said I hate making small talk, especially if I have my DC with me and I'm trying to keep them calm. I do my big shops online, and have done for years now so it's rarely more than a basket load. I wish there was was way of scanning my face in to show my age, perhaps a wrinkle detector so I didn't have to get an assistant over to verify my age, they just take one look at me and verify me anyway so I don't even need ID for them.

@HilaryBriss

I like the self-service tills, particularly the ones where you scan/pack your shopping as you go round the shop and then just pay at the end. Sooo much quicker.

Yep. I'm with you.

Our Sainsbury's had 2-3 members of staff overseeing the self service tills and they reduce queues at the manned tills for those who prefer to use them.

I don't like them. Will use them for a few items but none of the ones in the shops near me seemed geared up for running a whole shop through - tiny packing area, only room for a basket etc. I nearly lost it in the Co-op recently. Was dashing in quickly in my way to work to buy a sandwich. The self service thing stopped working (as they always do for me). No staff member in sight. I waited several minutes, then went to look for a member of staff who said, 'I know. I'll be there when I've done this' and carried on putting stuff on the shelves.

Now, it wasn't her fault I was in a rush or that the machine wasn't working, and I am a very polite sort of person so just went back to the till to wait, but if shops want people to use their shitty self service tills then they need to train their remaining staff that dealing with customers is more urgent than putting Maltesers on the shelves.

I always use Scan as you Shop and avoid the queues. I don’t know why more people don’t use it. No need to double handle all your shopping packing your trolley twice.
Love a self service till too.

And by using them, you may be making the job of buying items more difficult for yourself (if you like self-check out, fine). The shop is there for you as the customer, not the reverse. Selling you the item is not some difficult beyond-their-scope task for someone working in a shop

No it’s not a difficult beyond-their-scope task. Our replenishment staff have for example five hours to get all the stock out from the warehouse. Every time a customer refuses the self service tills someone has to stop what they are doing to go on a checkout and serve them. Fair enough. However it eats into that 5 hour time they have to do their own task. There’s no accounting for customers asking where something is or having to jump on a checkout etc. They don’t get that time back it then means they then have less time to do their jobs, which to be fair is already quite restricted due to company greed. It really is a PITA for the shop floor staff.

God, I love a self-service till. Scan as you shop for larger shops works so well and means you can bag as you go.

Even smaller shops scanned on a self-service till is so much faster and easier for me. No small talk. Rarely need someone to come and help- the faults/ issues are almost always user error. If you feel they 'break as soon as you walk by', you're probably leaning on something, or your bag is half hanging off.

I get the impression that in a lot of stores they don't employ people solely to sit on a till all day every day any more.
The staff have to be able to multi task so when not required for tills could be doing literally anything else in the shop, and get called when required.

I actually prefer using them and choose self service over a manned checkout. I find them very quick and rarely have problems with them malfunctioning - maybe if there is something very light, like a birthday card, but that's sorted out pretty quickly.

@Pedalpushers

Sorry, love a self service till, I'm faster than the people on the checkouts and the queues are much shorter.

Same here. I think we may be in the minority.

I don't want to talk to someone while I'm shopping.

I avoid them completely. I don’t think they are quicker. Often malfunction. And more importantly are seeing people out of jobs.

I prefer self service tills for a small shop.

At the moment at Wilko's they have turned the proper tills into self scan so you even get to stand behind the till and play cashier.
They built a new Lidl here not long ago and I was so hopeful there would be self service tills like the one they built a few years ago in the next town, but no.

I love self service tills, and was really pleased to see them in Matalan. But unlike the pp, who said no staff were to be seen anywhere, in ours there is someone breathing down your neck the whole time, talking you through. That really annoys me! I know how they work and will ask for help if I need it!!

I hate them but will still shop in places that have them. The key thing is choice, in my local sainsburys they often don't have anyone on the proper tills anymore and so I've stopped going there. I'd rather go to a supermarket where if I do a large shop, someone else does the scanning.

As an aside, wasn't modernisation supposed to make things better? Now you need two people to work to afford a house, you have to build your own furniture, scan your own shopping etc.

I bloody love them. I loathe supermarkets. I usually listen to music through earbuds when I'm shopping and I love just being able to go and check my stuff out myself and not have to make small talk. I've found in recent years they've really improved too, so less of the 'bagging area' issues etc. I hope they continue to improve them and install them in more shops - my local Co-op have just got some and that's a godsend as all the staff in there are really rude.

I have given up on visiting supermarkets altogether.
Since having long Covid, I have had my weekly Sainsbugs shop delivered.
It ensures that jobs are maintained for the pickers and drivers, and it saves me a 20 mile round trip and an hour and half of hassle. I just put the food straight in the fridge/cupboards - five minutes max.

Additionally I don’t WANT to scan my big shops. I like someone doing it. They get paid to do it. I don’t.

Well I do! Sorry but I love self scan and would hate to go back to the hassle of unloading my trolley on to a belt only to then load it back in to bags when it has gone through the checkout. Even before self scan I preferred the self service tills for a few items, usually quicker as the queue is shorter.

I understand your point about the big Tescos gobbling up the market from smaller businesse. That is a shame and I have seen that happen here too. But I think these are slightly different issues. When I am in a supermarket I am more than happy to use the technology.

I am old enough to remember when cash points were rare and you had to go in the bank and queue up to withdraw money. And when many petrol stations were not self service and you had to wait for someone to come and fill your car up. We seem to accept and move on from these and going back would be almost unthinkable now. Self service in shops is becoming normal. Live with it.