Woolies shopper allegedly accused of theft due to frustrating self-checkout error
- Replies 93
Where’s the cashier?
That’s a question you may have asked yourself in the last few months as more supermarkets embrace self-checkouts. To their credit, these new shopping introductions do work generally well, but–as any tech enthusiast will tell you–you can't always rely on them to work as expected.
Take the story of one 68-year-old Woolworths customer from Vincentia, New South Wales, who experienced a particularly frustrating snag with the checkout machine.
Noni Lyall was bagging groceries at the self-service checkout when a red light started flashing, and artificial intelligence (AI) technology informed staff that she had not scanned a bottle of juice.
And as much of the technology relies on surveillance and facial recognition software, it made the shopper feel like she was stealing.
'To put it bluntly, I was p***ed off, I just couldn't believe it,' she expressed.
'I'm a 68-year-old lady, I don't steal.'
She hurriedly explained to the staff that she had scanned the item, but it didn't fit into the bags, so she just placed it back in her trolley.
Thankfully, the staff quickly realised the error, and the situation was quickly resolved. Still, the false accusation made the shopper understandably angry and embarrassed.
‘I just thought, wow, you want us to do all our own work now by scanning our own groceries, not having the staff to service, and yet you're going to start accusing us of not paying?' Ms Lyall said.
She also shared that the experience gave her the ‘irk’, and she is determined to no longer shop at her city’s only Woolworths.
The new self-serve checkouts were implemented in Western Sydney’s Seven Hills last year, with much scrutiny over the AI-run software.
Samantha Floreani of the Digital Rights Watch group claimed the technology could make customers feel 'like they are constantly being watched and recorded'.
'This kind of normalisation of surveillance makes space for the growing use of invasive technologies in everyday life to access everyday essential services,' she said.
It’s notable that supermarket giants implement technology like this partly to combat shoplifters.
A spokesperson stated, ‘While most customers do the right thing at our self-serve checkouts, we're all busy, and mistakes can easily happen.’
Unfortunately, our members have experienced a similar issue with Woolies’ self-serve checkouts.
Member @Suzanne rose wrote: ‘We had taken a trolley into Woolworths from Kmart, so it wasn't even grocery items in the trolley, but it picked up that we had a trolley with items in it.’
‘The annoying thing was the lady was helping 2 other people, and then a third went up to ask for something else. I told her this was not fair I had to wait when I was using self-serve to get in and out, and then it picked up Kmart items in my trolley then wouldn't let me proceed,’ she added.
Member @Earth child shared: ‘After scanning and packing all items, the sensor reported two unused homemade bags in my trolley at the point of payment. The screen prompt asked for all items to be rescanned! I was kept waiting while the assistant helped others with issues at their self-serve bays, and wanted to resolve the unnecessary issue. Fortunately, I didn’t have to rescan, but if I was requested to do so, I would have emptied the contents of the bags, left them and walked out. ALDI staff are friendly, Woolies staff (are) dour. No wonder when they have to deal with customer frustration.’
‘I always used the self-checkout, not any more. You can not have your personal handbag in the trolley, as it will tell you that you have something in the trolley and not let you proceed. Where else can you place your personal bag, as you need two hands to use the personal checkout? You are made to feel like a thief,’ member @Sharson stated.
On the other hand, there are members who had no issues with the AI technology.
Member @Observer said: ‘I don't have any issues with it. I scan my items until l hit a $30 spend putting them to the side, scan the rewards card for benefits, and then pay. I place the trolley behind me so the camera doesn't see anything but me. Then all is good. Bagged items go back into my trolley with the receipt. Then I start again. When using my card to make the payment, I hold it in the palm of my hand so that my card details will not be recorded.’
‘Another way of having a go at self-checkouts. I couldn't care less if they want to look in my bags and don't care how many cameras are filming me. If people didn't steal so much, nobody would have to worry about it,’ member @freedy50 claimed.
If you’re one of the customers who don’t like self-serve checkouts, we have an ongoing petition to stop its full transition in major retailers. You may sign the petition here.
What do you think of this story, members? Share your self-checkout experiences in the comments below!
That’s a question you may have asked yourself in the last few months as more supermarkets embrace self-checkouts. To their credit, these new shopping introductions do work generally well, but–as any tech enthusiast will tell you–you can't always rely on them to work as expected.
Take the story of one 68-year-old Woolworths customer from Vincentia, New South Wales, who experienced a particularly frustrating snag with the checkout machine.
Noni Lyall was bagging groceries at the self-service checkout when a red light started flashing, and artificial intelligence (AI) technology informed staff that she had not scanned a bottle of juice.
A Woolworths shopper was left frustrated after self-checkout falsely accused her of theft. Credit: wisely/Shutterstock
And as much of the technology relies on surveillance and facial recognition software, it made the shopper feel like she was stealing.
'To put it bluntly, I was p***ed off, I just couldn't believe it,' she expressed.
'I'm a 68-year-old lady, I don't steal.'
She hurriedly explained to the staff that she had scanned the item, but it didn't fit into the bags, so she just placed it back in her trolley.
Thankfully, the staff quickly realised the error, and the situation was quickly resolved. Still, the false accusation made the shopper understandably angry and embarrassed.
‘I just thought, wow, you want us to do all our own work now by scanning our own groceries, not having the staff to service, and yet you're going to start accusing us of not paying?' Ms Lyall said.
She also shared that the experience gave her the ‘irk’, and she is determined to no longer shop at her city’s only Woolworths.
The new self-serve checkouts were implemented in Western Sydney’s Seven Hills last year, with much scrutiny over the AI-run software.
Samantha Floreani of the Digital Rights Watch group claimed the technology could make customers feel 'like they are constantly being watched and recorded'.
'This kind of normalisation of surveillance makes space for the growing use of invasive technologies in everyday life to access everyday essential services,' she said.
It’s notable that supermarket giants implement technology like this partly to combat shoplifters.
A spokesperson stated, ‘While most customers do the right thing at our self-serve checkouts, we're all busy, and mistakes can easily happen.’
Unfortunately, our members have experienced a similar issue with Woolies’ self-serve checkouts.
Member @Suzanne rose wrote: ‘We had taken a trolley into Woolworths from Kmart, so it wasn't even grocery items in the trolley, but it picked up that we had a trolley with items in it.’
‘The annoying thing was the lady was helping 2 other people, and then a third went up to ask for something else. I told her this was not fair I had to wait when I was using self-serve to get in and out, and then it picked up Kmart items in my trolley then wouldn't let me proceed,’ she added.
Member @Earth child shared: ‘After scanning and packing all items, the sensor reported two unused homemade bags in my trolley at the point of payment. The screen prompt asked for all items to be rescanned! I was kept waiting while the assistant helped others with issues at their self-serve bays, and wanted to resolve the unnecessary issue. Fortunately, I didn’t have to rescan, but if I was requested to do so, I would have emptied the contents of the bags, left them and walked out. ALDI staff are friendly, Woolies staff (are) dour. No wonder when they have to deal with customer frustration.’
‘I always used the self-checkout, not any more. You can not have your personal handbag in the trolley, as it will tell you that you have something in the trolley and not let you proceed. Where else can you place your personal bag, as you need two hands to use the personal checkout? You are made to feel like a thief,’ member @Sharson stated.
On the other hand, there are members who had no issues with the AI technology.
Member @Observer said: ‘I don't have any issues with it. I scan my items until l hit a $30 spend putting them to the side, scan the rewards card for benefits, and then pay. I place the trolley behind me so the camera doesn't see anything but me. Then all is good. Bagged items go back into my trolley with the receipt. Then I start again. When using my card to make the payment, I hold it in the palm of my hand so that my card details will not be recorded.’
‘Another way of having a go at self-checkouts. I couldn't care less if they want to look in my bags and don't care how many cameras are filming me. If people didn't steal so much, nobody would have to worry about it,’ member @freedy50 claimed.
If you’re one of the customers who don’t like self-serve checkouts, we have an ongoing petition to stop its full transition in major retailers. You may sign the petition here.
What do you think of this story, members? Share your self-checkout experiences in the comments below!
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