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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

AIBU to think some supermarket shoppers have become so rude?

50 replies

Mamma23 · 05/10/2026 14:15

Does anyone else find that people in supermarkets are just so rude nowadays? No ‘excuse me’ to get past, no ‘thank you’ if you move your trolley out of the way etc. Not sure if it’s my local area, a Tesco thing or just everywhere nowadays? Normally I just let it go and carry on with my shopping but today really irked me!
In Tesco today, my baby (almost 1) in the seat in the trolley. I stopped momentarily in front of the milk to grab some and a woman comes along, pushes my trolley (with my child in!) into me, then leant in front of where I was leaning to grab her milk. I did say something along the lines of ‘excuse me would have sufficed’ and she walked away grumbling under her breath but I just thought it was so rude!

OP posts:
SaraHoliday · 05/10/2026 14:21

Yes. It's my Mum. I apologise.

Ihavenoideawhatmyusernameis · 05/10/2026 14:32

I agree and have had a few similar experiences recently. Not just when shopping but in general! Someone actually tried to force me into the road the other day rather than share the path!! There was room for two people!!

Although some of these experiences have been in Tesco or Aldi, it’s been pretty much everywhere/anywhere. Entitlement is off the charts right now and it’s exhausting to the point where I hate going shopping (and I used to love it!) 😩

Saltysweetspicy · 05/10/2026 15:03

Our big Sainsburys is very pleasant, nothing like this, along with Aldi. Our big Tesco though, very stressful experience along with Morrisons and Asda. Waitrose and Lidl somewhere in the middle. Yes I have every supermarket within a very close range!

LateNightOne · 05/10/2026 15:04

It's not only in supermarkets.

Poppinpoppinpopcorn · 05/10/2026 15:13

The one that gives me the rage is people expecting me to suddenly jump out the way while I'm choosing products. I was there first, I carnt instantly move due to bad arthritis and other health issues. Just wait untill I'm done damn it.

Mamma23 · 05/10/2026 16:40

Seems to be a universal issue then rather than a local area issue- not sure which is worse though!

OP posts:
Nutmuncher · 05/10/2026 16:53

It’s more than just supermarket shoppers. The pandemic, device addicts, weak gentle parenting and a huge dollop of self entitlement have spawned truly awful people and the knock on effect is some of the decent ones start to turn bad…

Saltedcarameltiramisucheesecake · 05/10/2026 17:00

This afternoon in my supermarket a woman was "saving" a space at the checkout and calling to her DH with the trolley to hurry up!
The couple behind her just looked on in disbelief. People are weird.

cartagenagina · 05/10/2026 17:06

Click and collect!

shellyleppard · 05/10/2026 17:19

unloading my trolley in aldi. Left a gap so i could put the rest of the shopping at the end . Lady behind started shoving her shopping into the gap .
told her i wouldnt be paying for her stuff and could she please just wait. Her response....im in a rush. Are'nt we all!!

Mamma23 · 05/10/2026 17:26

cartagenagina · 05/10/2026 17:06

Click and collect!

I do sometimes do click and collect/delivery however I use Clubcard Plus and get 2 10% off shopping vouchers per month. They can only be redeemed in store, so I have to brave it twice a month!

OP posts:
Mamma23 · 05/10/2026 17:29

shellyleppard · 05/10/2026 17:19

unloading my trolley in aldi. Left a gap so i could put the rest of the shopping at the end . Lady behind started shoving her shopping into the gap .
told her i wouldnt be paying for her stuff and could she please just wait. Her response....im in a rush. Are'nt we all!!

It’s this- the entitlement and just sheer ignorance that they can be the only possible ones that are in a rush! I don’t think I know anyone that likes food shopping so most people are just trying to get in and out as quickly as possible!

OP posts:
shellyleppard · 05/10/2026 17:43

@Mamma23 exactly!!! But I'm always polite and put the next customer bar at the end of my shopping. Leave people enough space..... maybe I'm just old Lol

Mamma23 · 05/10/2026 17:51

shellyleppard · 05/10/2026 17:43

@Mamma23 exactly!!! But I'm always polite and put the next customer bar at the end of my shopping. Leave people enough space..... maybe I'm just old Lol

Funnily enough, I find it’s ’older’ people that seem to be the worst for this kind of thing. Woman from today I would have put at early 70’s. Another time, I had my baby’s changing bag on my back and another older woman (again, I would say early 70’s) pushed against the rucksack to push me out of the way to get to the strawberries! I’m early 30’s but I always put the bar out (I scan and shop in the supermarket though), leave people some space whilst they pay and get their trolley to go etc. So many just seem to lack common courtesy!

OP posts:
5289843DM · 05/10/2026 17:51

Not just tesco.

-I can't stand people that only think to start searching for their club card/money/credit card etc after everything had been scanned through and it comes as a complete shock to them
-I can't stand aldi/lidl where people take 20hrs to pack things meticulously into their specific shopping bags whilst hold everyone up, rather than using the 'packing shelf' behind them
-People leaning across to get an item and not saying 'excuse me' to just standing in front of you
-People walking 2 or 3 a breast down the aisle at a snails pace

shellyleppard · 05/10/2026 17:54

@Mamma23 modern life unfortunately. Everyone is in a rush.

malloryknox123 · 05/10/2026 17:55

I have to accompany my DM to the shops because there’s a real risk she might hurt someone because of the sheer lack of consideration for others

Becs51 · 05/10/2026 19:00

Loads of rudeness in shops in general I can see why it can be triggering though. I’ve stood patiently behind someone waiting to get my usual butter or whatever and someone has literally stood there looking blankly at everything for 5 minutes I kid you not, at that point I will say excuse me and duck in and get said butter and leave them staring blankly at the cabinet. I get sometimes you can’t decide or need to check labels but there are so many people who are completely oblivious to the fact they’re generally blocking half a fridge or the entire aisle sometimes with their trolley too.
I online shop as much as possible for this reason it drives me insane. It’s a chore that need to be done not a hobby🙈

suburburban · 05/10/2026 19:08

Becs51 · 05/10/2026 19:00

Loads of rudeness in shops in general I can see why it can be triggering though. I’ve stood patiently behind someone waiting to get my usual butter or whatever and someone has literally stood there looking blankly at everything for 5 minutes I kid you not, at that point I will say excuse me and duck in and get said butter and leave them staring blankly at the cabinet. I get sometimes you can’t decide or need to check labels but there are so many people who are completely oblivious to the fact they’re generally blocking half a fridge or the entire aisle sometimes with their trolley too.
I online shop as much as possible for this reason it drives me insane. It’s a chore that need to be done not a hobby🙈

Yes and taking so long, it can be frustrating

CatMum27 · 05/10/2026 19:36

It’s not just you. I often use the scan as you go and it takes ten seconds to scan something and put it in the trolley before I move on. The amount of people tutting, pushing past or asking me to move when it’s clear what I’m doing is mind boggling. It actually takes me longer to respond and move than it would have to just let me finish.

I actually find the staff picking online shopping to be worse. Yes, I know you have targets but do you need to lean right across me or shove me out of the way to get what you want? I might as well not be there, spending my money.

Mamma23 · 06/10/2026 14:23

CatMum27 · 05/10/2026 19:36

It’s not just you. I often use the scan as you go and it takes ten seconds to scan something and put it in the trolley before I move on. The amount of people tutting, pushing past or asking me to move when it’s clear what I’m doing is mind boggling. It actually takes me longer to respond and move than it would have to just let me finish.

I actually find the staff picking online shopping to be worse. Yes, I know you have targets but do you need to lean right across me or shove me out of the way to get what you want? I might as well not be there, spending my money.

Yes about the workers- I find there’ll be two of them side by side with their big crate trolleys so that they block the aisle, chatting away to each other (occasionally about things that are actually quite inappropriate) and don’t even register me when I say excuse me, just carry on their conversation and move aside!

OP posts:
Mamma23 · 06/10/2026 14:26

Becs51 · 05/10/2026 19:00

Loads of rudeness in shops in general I can see why it can be triggering though. I’ve stood patiently behind someone waiting to get my usual butter or whatever and someone has literally stood there looking blankly at everything for 5 minutes I kid you not, at that point I will say excuse me and duck in and get said butter and leave them staring blankly at the cabinet. I get sometimes you can’t decide or need to check labels but there are so many people who are completely oblivious to the fact they’re generally blocking half a fridge or the entire aisle sometimes with their trolley too.
I online shop as much as possible for this reason it drives me insane. It’s a chore that need to be done not a hobby🙈

Yes I find the same about people blocking fridges- I usually just say ‘sorry, could I just get in there please?’ Sometimes they get annoyed, sometimes they’ll be gracious and sometimes they’ll just blank me. It’s just good manners to at least acknowledge someone and takes a second surely?!

OP posts:
Woodeny · 06/10/2026 15:09

I don’t understand the Lidl /Aldi packing shelf. I’ve bought my groceries, you can damn well wait while I pack them at the till. I’m not going to tit around with a packing shelf just so that the supermarket can get through shoppers more quickly. If they’re worried about queues forming they can open another till.

CraftySeal · 06/10/2026 15:22

I was recently at a shop and wanted to get a product that was in a corner where a woman was standing, looking at the shelf. I hovered, side on to her, she could DEFINITELY see me and tell I wanted access to her bit of shelf, but she didn't move. If she'd just moved to the left slightly, we could have both just looked at the shelf together, but she didn't. Eventually I said "excuse me" and reached around her and grabbed the product I wanted and immediately got out of her way, she then tutted and told me I was rude and impatient. I still don't know if I was in the wrong for not explicitly asking for her to move slightly, or not just waiting until she had finished looking, or if she was deliberately being difficult.

5289843DM · 06/10/2026 15:29

@CraftySeal I get similar sometimes. But I'll say 'excuse me'
Not a flinch, so then a bit louder 'excuse me', again nothing and by the time they actually hear me- they then think I'M the one being rude by shouting! You can't win.