to think that supermarket etiquette works like this

[franklymydear]

in a busy supermarket like Sainsburys on a saturday, you finish shopping and join a horribly long queue.

Suddenly you remember something which happens to be in the next aisle along, so you leave your trolley in the queue and dash to get said item.

When you come back you expect your trolley to be in the same place and not to have been moved to the side and an old bloke with a basket in front of you starting to unload his basket.

Shopping etiquette says you wait your turn right even if the owner of the trolley in front is not there for a couple of minutes.

oh no I'm not

[heehee]

you said the 'old bloke' was starting to unload his shopping in the OP. you now say he wasn't.

you said he didn't ask to move infront of you or move your trolley. you now tell us he arrived after you'd gone. ie you weren't there to ask.

you said you had very few items. now you say you had 10 bags of rice plus other things.

shop online. save yourself.

So if the old man wasn't behind you when you left to get your Alpen, how would he know whether you'd just popped over to the cereal aisle or abandoned your trolley for good?

Having said that, if it had been me, when you turned up and said 'Oh' pointedly, I probably would have let you go first, because I've never really thought a place in a supermarket queue worth getting upset about - in fact, franklymydear, I don't give a damn.....

ruddynorah I haven't been contradictory why are you trying to make it sound like I have

well I think YANBU as it'd annoy me to.

Also, following on from other etiquette -

please people LAY YOUR BOTTLES DOWN. Seriously annoying

becaues my trolley was right at the end of the conveyor belt and in to the checkout aisle and had to be moved in order for him to get in front

oh rusty when you say it out loud it loses its humour

...and always put the, next customer, dooda down as well.

Unless you want to pay for my shopping.

So basically, you started this thread NOT to ask if you were being unreasonable, but to come here and tell everybody that you definitely weren't being unreasonable? And now you're getting a bit touchy with people who don't agree with you?

no girls I'm not getting touchy

but I am separating people with no manners from those with some

and of course I don't care if you think I'm unreasonable to believe in supermarket etiquette and not doing things that inconvenience others because it makes your life a little easier - why the hell would I?

I'd have moved your trolley....and I don't believe in Karma.

But where were your manners? How was anyone else supposed to know where you had gone and how long you were going to be?

Frankly, it is really not worth getting upset about, certainly not worth posting about. But I can see why he probably thought that you were being rude and inconveniencing others so you are both as bad as each other IMO.

YABU

Your trolley might have been left at the checkout, but you were not there. Old man or whoever it might have been has every right to move your trolley and go next.

I would have done the same. You cannot reserve places at checkouts with trolley's. I used to work in a supermarket and this wound me up no end.

And yes, I am one of those that packs all shopping before getting my purse out to pay

Oh, give FMD a break.

I agree Salsa that you can't expect your place to be reserved, without okaying it with the person behind you (which the OP wasn't able to do in this case), but to say that you don't pay until you've finished packing.....well...that's just beyond the pale of any kind of reasonability and a flagrant breach of supermarket etiquette worldwide. I am shocked. SHOCKED.

so many ill-mannered people - why am I not surprised?

Catski, I'm shocked and OUTRAGED.

the great British art of queueing is obviously dying

how sad

how times change

wails

Í don´t pay until I´ve finished packing.

What difference does it make?

Here's one - people who pay for shopping in 2 lots when they're buying stuff for someone else as well. Just pay for it all in one go for Cliff's sake.

yeah, Corny, they should be shot

on the spot.

the problem with the packing/paying thing is that now everything is barcoded the goods are processed super quickly - and they pile up much faster than you can pack them.

I always refuse help with packing because packers always overload the bags and you have to repack anyway!

I get really pissed off when the next customer starts edging towards me to claim her space in the packing area when i haven't quite finished. I actually think it makes sense to finish packing completely and then pay and then move away swiftly.

Yes I hate the edging towards me as well Nancy. I purposely stand in the same place in the queue for just a little bit longer than necessary when I feel a trolley pressing into the small of my back. Feckers the lot of 'em. Thank god for tinternet else I'd have been on crimewatch by now.

Diddl, it means that the cashier can't start processing the next customers items which means everything halts until you're done with your packing.

There's normally two packing 'areas' per conveyor belt isn't there? (separated by one of those moveable, um, things that you can swish from side to side)