A WALMART customer has hit out after being forced to wait even longer due to an in-store measure.
The shopper complained about the retailer’s response when she forgot to collect her receipt after using self-checkout.
Sarah Davis criticized Walmart for the footsteps she encountered when trying to leave the store.
Davis first complained about his local store’s checkout options in a scathing Facebook comment publish.
“Hey Wal-Mart you should probably open records and put your employees to real work so we don’t have to check 100 grocery items on our own!!!” she wrote.
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve checked out because the staff just stands around doing nothing.”
The customer then detailed how she was forced to wait in line because of an anti-theft measure.
A growing number of retailers have adopted check receipts in their stores.
This resulted in a member of staff standing between the checkout area and the store exit to ask customers for proof of purchase.
These employees will check the receipt and purchased items before allowing customers to leave.
Davis shared what happened to her when she didn’t pick up her proof of purchase at the self-service kiosk.
The angry shopper said she was forced to wait in line at the store’s customer service counter to receive a new receipt.
Davis then raged at the receipt check itself and said “just so the doorman could look at it for 0.5 seconds and say “ok thanks” LIKE WHAT!!”
“Do better at Walmart,” she added.
Other Facebook users shared their approach to receipt checks in the comments of his post.
“The moment I pay for and store my items, they are now my personal property,” one person said.
Legality of receipt and detention checks
In an effort to reduce retail crime, stores are increasingly turning to checking receipts as customers leave.
Legally, stores can ask to see a customer’s receipts, and members-only stores have the right to demand such checks if customers agree to the terms and conditions authorizing them.
Many legal professionals have evaluated and reached similar conclusions, warning that all states have specific laws.
Generally speaking, stores have Retailer Privilege laws that allow them to detain a person until authorities arrive when there is reasonable suspicion that a crime, such as robbery, has been committed.
Refusal to provide a receipt is not in itself a reason for a store to detain a customer; she must have additional reasons to suspect a client of criminal activity.
Due to the recent nature of receipt checks, there is little concrete legislation regarding the legality of the practice, as it takes time for the law to catch up with technology.
Setliff Law, PC states that “there is no definitive case law specifically relating to the refusal to present a receipt for purchases.”
For stores that misuse the Retailer Privilege, they may face charges of false imprisonment.
“The primary law that applies to these types of wrongful arrest cases is called ‘False Imprisonment,’” the local Hudson Valley attorney explained. Alex Mainetti.
“Of course, you are not literally arrested, but you are detained by a person who does not have the legal authority to detain you and/or wrongfully detains a client.”
It is likely that as store altercations over receipt checks continue, more lawsuits will occur giving clearer definitions and limits to the legality of receipt checks.
“I just keep walking if they ask for my receipt.”
“Just say no and keep walking,” someone else said.
OFF
Davis was not the only buyer to complain about this measure, US Sun previously reported.
A customer explained why he didn’t stop by the receipt verification team.
“They can’t force you to show the receipt. It’s an invasion of privacy.” one Facebook user wrote.
The US Sun has reached out to Walmart for comment.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
