Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Shops are becoming quite scary

378 replies

ithinkilikethislittlelife · 25/02/2026 12:42

I am starting to become quite nervous in shops, primarily shops that sell food stuffs. Just yesterday I saw two men go through a fire door in my local supermarket that takes them straight into the car park armed with baskets of stolen items. The one basket had steak/meats and the other looked like it was all bottles of vodka. The poor staff trying to wrestle the baskets back and stop the two men from leaving was quite upsetting to witness. This was yesterday. Saturday in my local co op a chap was loitering by the alcohol section while I was shopping. Getting into our car outside I noticed him sprinting past us clutching bottles of alcohol. Me and dh see it all the time now. It’s an epidemic. And it usually seems to be men. And I’m not having it that they are stealing milk for babies or bread for their children. I always see them take alcohol. I don’t know what the answer is but yesterday I was frightened for the staff member who intervened as the one chap raised a bottle of alcohol at her and she then backed off but I totally understood her rage at trying to stop the thieves taking from her place of work. I don’t want my children to witness these thieving people and I don’t want to feel anxious just trying to go about my day and buy food!

OP posts:
Era · 02/03/2026 16:57

You can no longer leave my closest lidl anymore without scanning your till receipt. It's on the edge of a large city in an area where I suspect there is a lot of shoplifting. Its a nightmare if you forget to take your receipt at the self service checkout.

climbintheback · 02/03/2026 17:07

They’ve been scanning receipts at the door manually for the last 40 years and more in Trago Mills in Falmouth nobody thought anything of it!

GeorgeMichaelsCat · 02/03/2026 17:18

ithinkilikethislittlelife · 02/03/2026 15:12

Not scary this time but the norm. Went into my local Co op to buy something and stood behind a chap (dressed like he worked in construction) Watched him scan through sandwiches, crisps and a drink and go. Then I approach the scanner and yes, it’s all there scanned but not paid for. So I call the staff over and she just sighed and said “all the time”. It must be so demoralising.

I've had this happen to me. I was next in line for the self scan tills. See a guy apparently pay and leave. I get to the till and he'd scanned the item but not paid.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page