Shoppers urged to stay vigilant after shocking self-checkout mistake at Woolworths

Errors at the checkout can be frustrating, but what happens when a simple mistake leads to a major shock at the register?

A routine shopping trip turned into an unexpected ordeal for one Queensland mum, sparking questions about how reliable these systems really are.

Her experience has left other shoppers rethinking their approach and raising concerns about a common feature many rely on daily.


A Woolworths shopper has issued a warning about the importance of double-checking the self-serve checkout screen before paying for items.


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Shopper warns: always check your self-checkout screen. Image source: Pexel/Gustavo Fring


Bek, a Queensland mum, recently visited her local Woolworths and was stunned when her shopping total reached approximately $80 after scanning just a few items.

‘I looked and the *Gabby’s Dollhouse* colouring book said $48 and it was a quantity of eight, so, like, eight of them, instead of one,’ she said.

Bek called over staff to assist, but the issue persisted.


She added: ‘I called the staff over and they tried to enter it manually. And it kept changing it to eight. They couldn’t figure out why.’

The colouring book should have cost just $6, but the system read it as eight items, inflating the price to nearly $50.

While staff resolved the issue, it remains unclear what caused the glitch.


Other shoppers shared similar experiences with the self-serve checkouts.

One said: ‘That happened with me a few months ago now…I didn’t know until I paid for it and it seemed expensive to what I went for.’

Another added: ‘It happened when I scanned a Redbull can. It came up as a 4 pack of them.’


A third recounted an incident at a staffed checkout.

‘This happened to me through the serviced checkout, on two occasions the girl scanned incorrectly and I was charged extra for items I didn’t buy,’ they said.

A Woolworths spokesperson addressed the issue in a statement.


‘This is an isolated issue, related to the barcode on one of the pencil sets we sell,’ they said.

‘Our team is correcting the scanning error on this barcode to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

‘We’re glad to see that our team was able to quickly rectify this issue in-store and the customer was only charged for the correct quantity.’


Shoppers who notice discrepancies at the self-serve checkout are encouraged to alert a staff member immediately.

The incident has made Bek more vigilant about her purchases.
‘It definitely makes me more cautious,’ she said.

‘I was always for self-serve checkouts because it’s quick and easy…But now, I would actually prefer to see more checkout staff.’

Key Takeaways
  • A Queensland mum was stunned when her Woolworths self-checkout bill came to nearly $80, despite scanning only a few items.
  • The issue arose when a single item was mistakenly scanned as multiple, inflating the price significantly.
  • Other shoppers shared similar experiences, with some encountering pricing errors on both self-serve and staffed checkouts.
  • Woolworths acknowledged the glitch, assuring customers that the issue would be fixed and urging vigilance at checkouts.

Have you ever been caught off guard by a scanning error? Share your experiences in the comments below.
 
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