Shoppers are FURIOUS at supermarket self-serve checkouts — find out why!

These days, it seems like everything is self-service.

You can now pump your own petrol, check yourself in at the airport, and even buy your groceries without speaking to a single soul. And while this may be more convenient for some people, others are not so thrilled about it.


In fact, a lot of people are downright angry about self-serve checkouts – especially at supermarkets. A few days ago, a post written by a frustrated shopper voicing their displeasure with these newfangled machines went viral.

‘Dear Kmart, Coles and Woolworths,’ the post begins. ‘You are almost exclusively self-checkout now.’

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The viral post calls out ‘almost exclusively self-checkout’ supermarkets. Credit: Facebook.com/Meanwhile in Australia

The shopper goes on to recount an incident where they were asked by a staff member to show their receipt as they were exiting the store. When they refused, the staff member allegedly called after them as they left.

In response, the shopper simply held up their receipt above their head and kept walking out of the store. Yikes!

‘You can either trust me to do self-checkout or you can put your cashiers back in place like it used to be,’ the post continues icily.


‘I'm not interested in proving that I did your job for you.’

The sentiment seems to be one that many Aussies share, as a glance at social media reveals an avalanche of similar opinions.

‘I f***ing hate self-checkout,’ one user fumed. ‘You always have to ask for help and then the staff give you s**t.’

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Self-checkout: the new shopper’s dilemma? Credit: Pexels.com/Anna Shvets
Another irate customer said, ‘Is it too much to ask that someone pack my groceries for me? I'm so over self-serve checkouts.’

And one disgruntled shopper even threatened to boycott supermarkets that have self-serve checkouts. ‘I'm not shopping at any store with self-checkout,’ they wrote.

‘I'll go to a store that uses cashiers. They need the job.’

On the note of jobs, one wrote: ‘I refuse to use (self-checkouts) as it encourages job losses for others.’


In response to the outpouring of reactions, a representative of Woolworths told Yahoo News that customers ‘always’ have the option to be served by a cashier and that they remain focused on providing shoppers with many ways to buy goods.

The advance of self-checkouts might not be so clear cut as they have one rising enemy: theft.

In the United States, grocery store chain Wegmans ultimately scrapped the use of its self-checkout app — until further notice — citing losses over shoplifting.


Back home, a report citing a Finder National Survey revealed that around two million Aussies admitted to stealing at self-service checkouts amid rising prices of goods.

The reality is that self-checkouts are not always faster or easier to use – in fact, they can be a cause of frustration and delays.

If the recent furore is anything to go by, they are certainly not always providing the level of customer service that shoppers expect.


So, what do you think? Are self-serve checkouts more trouble than they're worth? Or are they a convenient addition to supermarkets?

Share your thoughts and opinions below!
 
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Well at my last shop which was at Coles there was 2 serving check outs. 1 being 12 or less which we went down to even though we had more than 12 items as the only other open serve check out was 6 deep with 3 with really full trolleys and yes some of the self-serve registers were empty - yes there are people who do not want to use self-serve. Would not surprise me if the same is happening at Woolies.
 
  • Wow
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