Do you want a receipt

[Bunnybenty]

I moved to England not that long ago.

In other countries that I lived in, they just gave me a receipt in the shops, everytime that I bought something. The receipt was always handed to me with the purchase.

Why in the UK do they not just give the receipt to you,

instead they always ASK you if you want a receipt.

What annoys me about it, is that it slows the shopping experience down so much.

Many times I have been called back to the till, to be asked if i want a receipt.

Example: I was in a small shop this morning. I only had a certain amount of time, as i was on the way to work. I was walking out of the door, when the woman at the till shouted at me "Wait. Come back! come back!".

I thought maybe my payment hadn't gone through, so I walked all the way back to her.

She said "Do you want a receipt?".

It drives me mad!

I'm getting pupil vibes, not teacher. Year 8 possibly!

I don’t really see the issue here.

If you don’t want one, say no receipt needed before they ask.

Not everyone wants a receipt or requires one so they ask and it stops them having to print out a receipt unnecessarily.

I take a receipt if I’m going to other shops jic (have been accused of shoplifting once in another country for having a bag of food underneath my stroller, that I bought from the same shop yesterday and kept my receipt for with the same cashier) or if I may need to return an item.

The only places that I know that don’t ask about receipts are the self-service with gates that print out receipts so you can use it to go through the gate to leave.

The printing ink is also carcinogenic. Lots of people don't like to handle it. Many till operators wear gloves for health and safety reasons. I surprised no one had said this yet.

I work in retail and always ask now because about 50% of the time i hand out a receipt the customer hands it back to me and tells me to bin it, so why would i bother printing it out if its going to be given back to me?

how much of a hurry are you in that you get wound up because they ask a question?

Omg.

How to even explain something to you.

Nope, that doesn't bother me, and quite frankly is less paper hanging around in my bag.
What pisses me off is immediately after you pay for half a week's worth of food, you're proceed to put your card back into your purse, and back into your bag so you can quickly zip the bag back up before you go on your way, but you look up to see the cashier is already looking over your shoulder ushering the next customer forward! You then start looking like an unreasonable twat as you have to say "excuse me, can I have a bag please?!" whilst displaying a look that says "or am I expected to balance this lot on my head?!"
Also, I get why some retailers like to charge for plastic bags - to limit the damage to the planet, I understand all of that - but why am I being charged for a paper bag?? That really annoys me. They're just charging you because they want to, and it pisses me off.

Yes please.

Of course it has.

If you don't want a receipt they are not going to call you back from partway across the shop. You've gone and they are onto the next customer.

They will call you back for change if you've paid by cash. And they might potentially call you back if you have bought something like an electrical item where it's good to have the receipt.

And your mind will blow OP but I was in the Netherlands recently and the self-service machine in the supermarket under my hotel asked me if I wanted a receipt.

Believe it or not, different shops and even different staff do different things. It's nothing to do with which country you are in.

And even the last one - happened to me in the Netherlands - I had to run back to the till to ask it for my receipt so I could get out! Good thing nobody was waiting to use that till behind me.

It's weird isnt it. The OP is probably an EU citizen and so has about 30 countries she can live and work in visa-free, but chooses the UK and then complains about inconsequential things like till receipts.

I've been asked this in Denmark

Hth

So @Bunnybenty asks (in AIBU) a question to which of the 280 respondants - 224 say yes - you are being unreasonable. Then argues with everyone that disagrees with her. Pfft.

in Lidl, marks, tescos etc I use loyalty cards and for the most I get an electronic receipt emailed to me. I don’t need more junk in the form of receipts.

unless I’m buying items I might return I don’t want a receipt.

I don’t want a receipt for the odds and ends for tonight’s dinner. Or the meal deal. Or the sanitary towels or painkillers.

If I want a receipt for budgeting or evidence I’ll ask for one.

it’s really not that difficult.

we do it differently in some (not all) shops.

in a charity shop I ran I’d ask you as they aren’t printed automatically. I have to go and press extra buttons and request one. This holds up the line. Two seconds to ask you could save that time. And paper.

YABU

I always have a receipt - I may want to return the item and also want proof I’ve paid before leaving the shop as I don’t always have a carrier bag with me. My email address contains my name so I don’t give it out in the middle of a shop

I don't know if something has happened in Next regarding email receipts from Directory returns because I returned something today and I am usually asked if I want paper or email, I always say paper because it has gone back on the wrong account before then you never get the email or any proof you returned an item. Today everyone was getting paper ones incase the email one doest 'work', which seemed quite unusual

I think its more weird that you think that someone would leave a country because of receipts.

Rather than the more normal reaction of coming on here and having a minor moan.

How bizarre.

Also it's utterlrly bizarre to act like I am the first person to ever come on here and complain about something minor.

Theres thousands of threads on here doing the same thing

No - it's your tone that's the problem. You said I was like a 12 year old. You've sworn at someone. You've argued with everybody and not once have you accepted a valid point.

I get more annoyed by being home n receipts for mundane, small purchases so you are definitely being unreasonable. The history is all there on my phone - why would I want another receipt? For anything I might conceivably want to return, the history is either linked to a loyalty card (JL) or the receipt is emailed.

Some countries tax authorities mandate that receipts must be given, because the info is linked real time or in batches to their equivalent of HMRC. But civilised countries like the UK do not ;)

Yeah I used to always refuse the email receipt. Then last week I wanted to take something back to River Island and I couldn’t find the damn receipt. They took it back but I only got the price on the day and since it was in the sale, I only got £18 when I’d paid £28. Guess who now takes the email copy!

I disgree with you

Why do you think that your opinion is the only correct one?

It is an opinion.

I am in France at the moment. We’ve been to several hypermarches who have all, without exception, asked me whether I want a receipt. So it’s not a British thing.

Maybe they think you look like a thief so want to ensure you have your receipt in case you are stopped by security?

I don't think my opinion is the only correct one although an awful lot of people on here seem to agree with me. However, you do seem to think that your opinion is the only valid one. I wonder why you asked a question in the first place if you don't want to hear people's opinions.

In the nicest possible way, people have explained it to you, but they can’t make you understand. It’s very common in the UK to be asked for a receipt rather than automatically given because most people most of the time don’t want one. You are not single handily going to change the way that UK retail works I’m afraid, and why would you want to? Seems a little narrow minded to think everywhere should work the way you want it to. Why not celebrate national differences?

Many other countries around the world ask before giving receipts, but many do not. I’ve lived in Europe, the US, S E Asia and Australia in my life, and guess what - each region and country within the region has its own peculiarities and idiosyncrasies, and a different approach to receipts. Some give them as a matter of course and, you‘ll hate this, some never give them!

yes i do want a receipt
particularly if they ask it like they dont want to give it,