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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

People openly stealing in Greggs

402 replies

Xraytime · 05/03/2025 12:45

Whilst I was in the queue for a coffee, 4 different people came in and took several sandwiches, doughnuts and drinks.

They were not together.

I feel like Greg’s need to put every behind the counter, I can’t see how it’s sustainable long term.

I see this at different Greggs aswell but there will normally be just one person. Today was shocking.

OP posts:
Thread gallery
6
Arrivederla · 05/03/2025 17:45

Limth · 05/03/2025 13:46

Personally, yes.

You think we shopkeepers should be defending themselves with guns? Because it works so well in the states, yes?

Unbelievable.

notedbiscuits · 05/03/2025 17:48

Friend's daughter works at a Greggs in a shopping centre. They get loads of thefts. Plus have permanently closed their toilet due to druggies getting their hit in there.

It's unfair for those customers who have disabilities/struggle to walk to the shopping centre's toilets as they are about two thirds of the way down the shopping centre. Unsure if McDs toilets are used by druggies as they have a front entrance by the entrance to the SC and a side entrance inside SC where just have to walk 20 steps plus a few steps down to the toilets.

Mrsbloggz · 05/03/2025 17:52

mumda · 05/03/2025 16:37

I'm surprised shops haven't taken up the Argos method.

Indeed! Does anyone have theory about why they havent?

Mynewnameis · 05/03/2025 17:52

I've seen staff confront them. They don't earn enough to deal with this shit. Needs to be behind a counter

Needmorelego · 05/03/2025 18:01

Mrsbloggz · 05/03/2025 17:52

Indeed! Does anyone have theory about why they havent?

Costs money to have to refit out all their branches.
Some have changed though so more might.

venus7 · 05/03/2025 18:06

dottiehens · 05/03/2025 13:12

I thought here there is a safety net and now a Labour government? What is happening because we pay a lot of taxes so not my fault the government do not use it property.

Edited

Freudian slip there.........presumably a Conservative, can't stop thinking about property.

SleepDeprivedButAlive · 05/03/2025 18:07

This happens hourly in our two high street Greggs shops too. I think upper management has told people to not get involved.

TealSwan · 05/03/2025 18:09

My local greggs only have hot food behind the counter. Rest of the food in on the shop floor and cool refrigeration.

AthWat · 05/03/2025 18:11

Badbadbunny · 05/03/2025 14:34

No one is that daft. Blair/Brown had 13 years to improve law and order and failed miserably. A lot of damage was done under Keir Starmer whilst he was in charge of public prosecutions and was, back then, widely condemned for being too soft. The lawlessness and lack of morals we see today started 30 years ago!

Do you want have another go and answer me in a way that makes some sort of sense in relation to the post I was replying to and what I said? Because the person I replied to did seem to be making the point that you claim nobody is daft enough to make.
Why you felt the need to start talking about Tony Blair, only you can know. I imagine you thought my post was supporting the Labour party, but again, if you actually read it, you'll realise it's doing nothing of the sort.

Cowabunga33 · 05/03/2025 18:17

Happens here too but also at the supermarkets, people just can’t afford the ridiculous prices of food now and they’ve made the majority of tills self service so their own fault in a way, they don’t want to pay staff to put food through a till and charge more for products so if there’s no staff to do the job people just think sod em and walk out with things……

shrumps · 05/03/2025 18:24

My local Boots has had to put all the makeup behind locked screens because they lose too much stock to theft and said ‘they can’t replace it quick enough’ I’ve been shopping in Boots for 50 years in towns all over the UK and never seen this, it’s bloody awful.

Mrsbloggz · 05/03/2025 18:28

Needmorelego · 05/03/2025 18:01

Costs money to have to refit out all their branches.
Some have changed though so more might.

That makes sense.
I was kinda thinking none of them would want to be the only 'draconian' supermarket (loss of business & hit to reputation?) but if they could all agree it was the only way forward maybe it would happen?

Crikeyalmighty · 05/03/2025 18:28

In Denmark we had walk in one way, walk out the other way at very many 'big ' stores and you could only get out by using a till receipt at a gate and someone was on the gate out too - you certainly couldn't have got out with large food items or anything more than an odd lipstick shoved in a pocket

crosskeysgreen · 05/03/2025 18:38

Summerhillsquare · 05/03/2025 12:50

The price of inequality, a divided society and breakdown of trust and social norms. Rich people don't notice because they don't shop in Greggs, and buy their way out of crime, anti social behaviour etc. Public service that keep social order and things ticking over are defunded so we don't tax the rich. Ironically, the rich benefit from more equality too, not least improved mental health: equalitytrust.org.uk/why-more-equality/

The 'rich' are taxed.

Needmorelego · 05/03/2025 18:40

@FaithFables I can't get that link to play but I have seen several clips on YouTube of seagulls (and squirrels) stealing from shops.
They are quite funny to watch.

mum2jakie · 05/03/2025 18:40

Pigcasso · 05/03/2025 13:21

have to be bloody desperate to eat one of those disgusting sandwiches

Bet you feel so superior to everyone who enjoys a Greggs. Well done you 👏

taxguru · 05/03/2025 18:50

The top 1% of earners paid 28.2% of the total income tax take. How much more do you want them to pay?

Summerhillsquare · 05/03/2025 18:52

try reading beyond the headline.

ArtTheClown · 05/03/2025 19:17

No-one is helping themselves to free food because of tax thresholds. They're doing it because their moral compass is broken.

Eastie77Returns · 05/03/2025 19:22

Well I can tell you one way to get a guaranteed response. A friend runs a local shop that has been targetted by young thugs who steal items. She has called the police on several oocasions whilst the thefts were in progress and no-one showed up.

On one occasion, acting on a hunch, she mentioned to the operator that the young men were Black (the group of boys were of different races but she was interested to see the reponse).

The police arrived within minutes.

crosskeysgreen · 05/03/2025 19:42

@Summerhillsquare did you read and understand the article you linked? I'm confused about the point you were trying to make

strawberrybubblegum · 05/03/2025 20:00

Summerhillsquare · 05/03/2025 18:52

try reading beyond the headline.

That article doesn't go into enough detail to be able to even be able to refute their proposals properly!

So I'll just refute the usual conspiracy theory crap people come up with on the subject.

Yes, capital gains % is lower than income tax. It's set that way to deal fairly with inflation and capital losses. Sure some countries calculate capital gains tax taking those into account, but it's much more complicated (which means more expensive to collect) and comes out about the same.

Wealth tax generally loses more than it makes, since the people you want to catch in it are generally mobile. France tried it, then reversed the law a few years later, having calculated that they had lost billions directly due to the tax as well as reduced their GDP growth.

There's a common argument that people on lower income pay a higher percentage of their income in VAT than richer people, often used to claim that VAT is regressive. That's actually incorrect: it only looks that way because people's income fluctuates more than their outgoings. When you're temporarily down on your luck, you spend your savings, so the amount you buy(and so the VAT you pay) is a higher proportion of your current income than usual. When you earn more, you put more in savings, so what you buy (and your VAT) are lower than usual. You'll still pay the VAT - but only when you spend your savings! Actually, higher income people pay more VAT than lower income as a proportion of what they spend... exactly as you would expect, given that so many necessities are exempt from VAT. (To be fair, your article doesn't make this mistake).

It's a ridiculous myth that rich people don't pay their share of tax. As a pp said, they pay a huge - disproportionately high - amount of tax. Both in absolute terms and as a percentage of their income.

This disdain for wealth, business etc are exactly what leads to the breakdown of the social contract @arttheclown talks about. And to the enshittification of our society she mentions too

Limth · 05/03/2025 20:21

strawberrybubblegum · 05/03/2025 20:00

That article doesn't go into enough detail to be able to even be able to refute their proposals properly!

So I'll just refute the usual conspiracy theory crap people come up with on the subject.

Yes, capital gains % is lower than income tax. It's set that way to deal fairly with inflation and capital losses. Sure some countries calculate capital gains tax taking those into account, but it's much more complicated (which means more expensive to collect) and comes out about the same.

Wealth tax generally loses more than it makes, since the people you want to catch in it are generally mobile. France tried it, then reversed the law a few years later, having calculated that they had lost billions directly due to the tax as well as reduced their GDP growth.

There's a common argument that people on lower income pay a higher percentage of their income in VAT than richer people, often used to claim that VAT is regressive. That's actually incorrect: it only looks that way because people's income fluctuates more than their outgoings. When you're temporarily down on your luck, you spend your savings, so the amount you buy(and so the VAT you pay) is a higher proportion of your current income than usual. When you earn more, you put more in savings, so what you buy (and your VAT) are lower than usual. You'll still pay the VAT - but only when you spend your savings! Actually, higher income people pay more VAT than lower income as a proportion of what they spend... exactly as you would expect, given that so many necessities are exempt from VAT. (To be fair, your article doesn't make this mistake).

It's a ridiculous myth that rich people don't pay their share of tax. As a pp said, they pay a huge - disproportionately high - amount of tax. Both in absolute terms and as a percentage of their income.

This disdain for wealth, business etc are exactly what leads to the breakdown of the social contract @arttheclown talks about. And to the enshittification of our society she mentions too

Beautifully put.