A TARGET customer was furious after a self-checkout rule forced him to wait more than 20 minutes for a single cashier.
Several retailers have imposed restrictions on self-checkout following a rise in theft.
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Some of these restrictions involve limiting self-checkout to a certain number of items or allowing customers to use machines only at specific times.
The rules left many customers upset, as they had to use traditional cashiers to complete their purchase, which led to long queues in many locations.
A shopper took to social media to vent her frustrations after a trip to Target went wrong.
“Dear @Target, you cannot change self-checkout to 10 items or less and then just open a normal checkout lane,” said the user he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Nobody has 20 minutes to wait in line to check out.”
The user explained that the incident happened at a location in Dallas, Texas.
TargetThe official customer service account contacted the user, apologizing for the incident.
“Oh no! We apologize for the long wait at the registration lanes,” the tweet read.
Target requested additional information about the incident, informing the customer that their complaint had been documented and shared with the store leadership team.
This was not the only complaint launched Target about your self-checkout rules.
Targets across the US have been enforcing strict rules, with some locations even eliminating self-checkout.
The chain announced in March that self-service machines would have a limit of 10 items or less.
However, customers say that with the restrictions, self-checkout machines are left unused, with only a few cash registers open.
“Target’s new 10-item self-checkout limit is garbage,” one shopper tweeted.
“Making people wait in a 20-minute line while 3 out of 4 self-checkout registers sit unused the entire time is ridiculous.
“I will never buy more than 10 items there again.”
Latest self-checkout changes
Retailers are evolving their self-checkout strategy in an effort to speed checkout times and reduce theft.
Walmart shoppers were shocked when self-checkout lanes at several locations were made available only to Walmart+ members.
Other customers reported that self-checkout was closed at specific times and more cashiers were offered in its place.
While shoppers feared that shoplifting would fuel the upgrades, a Walmart spokesperson revealed that store managers are simply experimenting with ways to improve checkout performance.
One bizarre experiment included an RFID-powered self-checkout kiosk that would thwart fiercely contested receipt checks.
However, this test has been discontinued.
At Target, items are being limited in auto-checkout.
Last fall, the brand researched new express self-checkout lanes in 200 stores with 10 items or less for added convenience.
In March 2024, this policy was expanded to 2,000 stores in the US.
The changes may have to do with the increase in retail theft across the country.
Stores lost an estimated $121.6 billion to retail theft in 2023, according to a study conducted by Capital One.
The number is expected to increase to more than $150 billion by 2026.
In 2022, shoplifting increased by 19.4%, according to the same study.
The US Sun reached out to Target to comment.
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