AIBU to complain after rude treatment at Boots over medication?

[TheOpalFox]

Went to boots today for some medication, they said it was prescription only . I then added it to basket and click and collected it . The woman was so rude to me! So rude !!! I then told her colleague … as I walked out, I wasn’t rude . She then shouted across the whole shop… you better not be talking about me!!!! Wow wow wow!!!!!

Struggling to understand who said what in this interaction.

What was the medication?

Surely you have a bit of a temper and she responded in a rude way? Perhaps it’s better to just let it go.

I think the pharmacy assistant was rude and unhelpful to give the customer a weird look, and to keep arguing back instead of offering to go and get the pharmacist to discuss it; and doubly so if the OP has evident learning difficulties.

Shouting across the shop is so ‘out there’ wrong that I can quite believe that the assistant was out of order previously and knew it.

Do you need a hug? It sounds like you need a hug.

Take care, OP

So, did you ask for “Eveana” (as you’ve written here), or “Evana”, which is what you actually wanted? If you said “Eveana” then she obviously heard “Eviana” which is HRT and prescription only.

Ask for the correct item next time. The funny look she gave you was probably her thinking, “Ffs, she’s just spent ages arguing with me and she wasn’t even asking for the right thing. Is it home time yet? 🤦‍♀️”

Evana is licensed as a P med - can only be sold in a pharmacy, with a pharmacist present. It is not a POM - prescription only medicine.

But that's not rude. Yes, she was mistaken, but the normal response is for you to politely point out that you don't believe it is prescription only; possibly with the additional detail that you've bought it over the counter before (if you have).

Click and collecting it in front of her and then making a point of talking about her to her colleague is, however, rude. Although shouting at you across the shop is deeply unprofessional.

I've found customer service at Boots so random over the years that I stopped going there. Even when I worked across the road and they had the best meal deals.

2 things stand out. I went to pick up my FiL's prescription and was told that I couldn't have it even though we lived at the same address and that he was the only person who could collect it. I pointed out that he was in his 90s and was just out of hospital and could not walk to the store from the parking (about half a mile). There was much huffing when I insisted on talking to the manager. Apparently they though I was trying to steal his medication!!! fyi - there was nothing narcotic included just blood pressure and other normal things for an elderly individual.

The other time I'd been given a prescription by my doctor for something that could be bought over the counter but because of the high cost it was agreed that I could get 2 months worth on one script at the normal prescription price. I was grilled about why I thought I needed this (period relief costing £45 a month) and that I had likely forged the script. I found this staggeringly shocking. I suggested they ring the doctor's surgery to check and was laughed at. No manager was available so after giving the individual a polite but stinging response I left. But before doing so she did try to keep the script so I couldn't use it elsewhere but decided to give it back when I asked loudly if I needed to ring the police for her stealing my property.

You mean like "Mary Smith, 36, High Street, Haemorrhoids, Constipation, Lactulose, Anusol Cream"!? 😮

Shocking! - and, why?

There are a lot of people on here who don’t get it. Much like the assistant didn’t get it. Some medication is not prescription only (as in you need a GP or nurse prescriber prescription) but it’s not over-the-counter either. Many previously prescription medications now can be issued with minimum fuss after answering a few questions with the pharmacist. A bit like it used to be with the morning after pill.

So this sounds like a medication the pharmacist should have been asked to speak to the OP about rather than getting a rude and incorrect ‘it’s prescription only’ brush-off from the dispensing assistant.

Using click and collect bypasses the assistant and gets the request direct to the pharmacist. This is what the assistant didn’t like. I have done similar in wickes where an assistant couldn’t be arsed to look and said they were out of stock, yet online they had 10 in store so I ordered click and collect. I went to have a coffee and came back a little over an hour later where the same chap handed me the item he said was out of stock. See also restaurants saying they can’t seat you as they are fully booked and immediately getting online outside and booking a table for 15 minutes time, only to be seated by the same staff who claimed they were fully booked.

It’s bizarre and only pushes people away from in person services. Getting had a go at for showing-up the assistant as lazy/incompetent is really not on. If you have alternative pharmacist you can use I would be tempted to put in a formal complaint but to head office via resolver.

It’s not rude for her to tell you that you can’t buy a prescription only medicine.

It was rude for her to shout at you across the shop.

How rude, depends on what you said to her colleague?

Yup
She seems a right jumped up madam on a power play towards OP
OP shouldn't have to explain.. ship assistant should know her role

Sounds like she was embarrassed & angry that she didn’t know it wasn’t prescription only and a customer had to tell her lol and took it out on you

I had such terrible service from Boots as my designated pharmacy that I'd never use them again for a prescription.

Agree.
They ask a thousand questions just to sell you paracetamol.

I can get paracetamol in my online Tesco's order FGS.

No doubt she breached her terms of employment shouting at you across the shop. It’s abusive and unprofessional.

I hope she profusely apologises to you if you ever venture in there again. Also hope you have alternative chemists where they treat customers with respect.

Maybe she needed all that medication for herself and was narked because you wanted some…….🤔🤔

I’ve also had dreadful service from Boots and will never use their pharmacy. I’ve also had someone who shouted loudly as if to perform in front of the queue when they didn’t want to give me something. I think it’s disgraceful!

I’ve witnessed something similar in my local branch of Boots, the staff there are mostly extremely rude, it’s as if it’s the culture within that store. I tried to complain but got nowhere, I’ve voted with my feet and taken my custom to Superdrug.

This.

Surely shouting at a customer across a store, "You'd better not be talking about me" is rude?

Sounds pretty rude and unprofessional to me.

So you perceived her as rude, got annoyed (but not rude-in your opinion!) told her colleague I’m guessing loud enough that she could get the jist of what you were saying/doing…and she got annoyed back. I think you need to step back and look at what you perceive as rude!

now…was it annoying that she couldn’t help you and figure out what you needed and how to get it for you, yes of course. But I think you are blowing it all out of proportion tbh

Not quite, but similar. I was mortified.