To be really annoyed by this at Sainsbury's

[dcsp]

I was at a large branch of Sainsbury's yesterday evening. None of the staffed checkouts were open, so I went to the self-checkouts. On the way out of them they have fitted gates which don't open until you scan your receipt.

If there was a person barring my exit from a shop until I showed them my receipt, I'd feel insulted by what was effectively an accusation of theft. Having a machine perform the same role felt similarly insulting.

I appreciate that retail theft has increased, but treating every one of your customers as if they're a thief until they prove otherwise is not the right thing to do! (also I expect most theft at self-checkouts happens by people who do still check something out therefore have a receipt).

Yes, sometimes the till alerts the person on duty in the self-service area to come and check what's in your bags. In Sainsburys, they look at your receipt and then pick a few things to rescan, I suppose if your receipt had 10 things on it but your bags clearly had 50 things in it then they wouldn't need to bother scanning to work out that you'd tried to shoplift.

So, you could obviously try to shoplift this way, but you take the chance of a spot check. I suppose it's the same as normal shoplifting, you're taking the chance that no one sees you pocket things rather than put them in your trolley/basket.

Thankyou I didn’t realise

In some supermarkets where you use the self-scan handset, and then check out, they do random scans on your shopping before you pay.

The till blocks you paying until an asst comes and rescans all your items.

It's an inconvenience if you are in a hurry but would I start a post on it as the 'perpetually offended brigade'?

no.

Seriously? It takes 3 seconds to scan your receipt. Do you also get annoyed at carparks where you have to put in your validated ticket once you have paid. So you also get annoyed that they are accusing you of not paying for parking? You need a grip, god forbid anything actually bad happens to you.

I get where you are coming from as often those tills ask 'do you want a receipt' and if I literally have one or two things I press 'no' without thinking (to save paper more than anything).

I would rather that than the security alarm go off as we leave and having to show a security guard my receipt. I usually shop online but I had actually paid at a human manned till couple of weeks ago. The security tag was removed from the toaster. But I had some sushi there was security labels stuck on that. You would think the alarm wouldn't be triggered once it's been scanned but obviously not. My brother work's in a local supermarket. Theft has shot up the last few years we're all suspects as far as they are concerned. They have even been testing staff by using tricks theives use. Like removing items from Chinese meal deal boxes and putting steak and cheese in them instead. They have to be constantly one step ahead. If you can prove you have paid what's the problem?

Not being checked again after the barriers, it's the barriers checking everyone that have annoyed me.

That's the automated equivalent of having a security guard who won't let anyone leave until they've shown their receipt. Pretty sure that wouldn't be legal, as they need some kind of reasonable suspicion to check.

Monoprix have done this in France for a while now.

For those saying they should hire more cashiers, there are really big recruitment issues in retail right now.

I feel insulted that the supermarkets take more and more of our money yet employ less and less people.

That’s the bigger problem.

Why would they trust you? They don't know you from Adam. Worse still, they know their staff and they steal, so they're hardly going to trust a complete stranger.

It isn't an insult to deter shoplifters where they can. Honestly, there's worse things going on in the world than this non-problem

I assume you’ve never been to Costco..?

Seriously, retail can't win can they? When they have to leave shoplifters to it (for their own safety) they're in the wrong, and when they put something in place to reduce theft, they're wrong as well. It's not a personal attack. The more goods are stolen, the more prices will have to increase to cover loses. There are bigger things to worry about!

At our local supermarket, they stop and count/check items against the receipt randomly. It seems to keep a lot of shoplifting through self-checkouts at bay according to a friend working there.

If you didn't take the receipt they can cross-check the camera to the station and see what you put through (according to my friend).

I used self-checkouts as they were generally quicker and easier for my disability, especially the self-scan types. No loading/unloading at the checkout. If every checkout was manned I'd still have used self-scan as I could see exactly how much my shopping was costing as I went along and take things out of my basket if it went up too much.

Alcohol is always flagged and checked due to age restrictions.

I'd rather have this system in place, offending a few people than pay increased prices caused by shoplifters.

They're not checking everyone though, they're checking the self-scan only. Or are you saying that every customer, even if they went through the normal tills, has to scan their receipt to be able to exit the shop?

Don't blame the supermarkets , blame the shoplifters.

If you don't like it shop elsewhere. Your anger should be directed at the shoplifters who make this type of thing necessary, not the store that is trying to remain profitable.

Finally - the right answer!

But be prepared for all the hand-wringers on MN excusing the behaviour of thieves!

@MassageForLife

Do you seriously think the shops pass on savings back to the consumer if they save a bit from theft? Because they don’t.. just like the energy companies and food companies.. they pocket the profit which is why year on year on year their profits are increasing despite telling us all their costs are going up.

wake up.

If you paid more they'd hire more people employ the same number but make more profits

Yeah, this. I’m not “insulted” by it but it seems wasteful and ineffective compared to staffed checkouts.

You are being ridiculous. They were checking because there was no staff checking the self service till.

So having your bags checked at an airport means you feel accused of being a terrorist? Get a grip

Sainsbury's seems to be actively trying to alienate me as a customer.
They haven't started this malarkey with scanning receipts yet at our local one, but I imagine it's only a matter of time. They closed the deli and the pharmacy.
I used to activate the alarms on exit on average one in every 3 shops, despite having paid for everything.
It's ironic they are apparently trying to clamp down - last time I filled up with fuel there was a shoplifter taking tins of beer off the shelf in the filling station shop - I mentioned to the cashier I'd seen some Police in the main shop, but she said she had to report it to her supervisor, who wasn't answering.

I have been ordering online recently from Ocado and it's looking likely I won't bother visiting Sainsbury's again.

I had this in Milan last year. It was no big deal. What’s ‘offended’ in Italian?

YABU They have been installed at my very local big Sainsbury's, understandably due to shop lifting
It's a bit more faff for me personally as I use a Walker and if the wheels are slightly too far forward the alarm goes off
I have it sussed now and it's no problem at all
Some people are professionally offended these days!!