to expect shop assistants to at least acknowledge that I am there

Suggested action when you "feel invisible" at a till: withhold the money/card until they look at you. All you have to do is stand there with the cash or card in your hand so it's obvious you're going to pay, just as soon as the checkout person is paying attention where they should be paying attention. If you feel it's necessary, you can 'apologise' to the people in the queue with something like: I'm sorry the shop assistant's rudeness caused a delay.

Baggy Yesss...I like it!

Thanks Baggy - I shall remember that & use it next time it's needed!

I have had shocking service in many many shops and I have complained at times. I have to say since moving here a year ago to the East Midlands I have been so surprised and delighted at the friendly shop assistants and market stall traders. Everyone not only acknowledges your purchases but passes the time of day as well which is lovely. When we lived outside London the shop assistants barely acknowledged your presence usually carrying on talking to each other and arranging their coffee breaks. In North Yorkshire they blanked us completely when they heard our London accents. Lovely here in Melton Mowbray and they call you 'my duck' as well.

I have already contributed to this thread, when I mentioned the subject at work my colleagues jumped on me - I work for a better style of supermarket as a internet shopper and help out on the tills from time to time. My colleagues wanted me to put their side of the problem forward. Rude Customers , of whom we have on a daily basis. A few contributions include: when the cashier greets the customer they are completely ignored, customer on mobile phone on unimpotant call, the whole transaction is conducted without any indication there is another person opposite you who would appreciate some acknowlegement. If your card is declined it is not the cashiers fault. Please hand your money to the cashier without a]licking it first or b] plonking it down rather then hand to hand. Don't snatch your change back as you might scratch the cashier several of us can attest to that. Don't let your kids use our wide aisles to cycle along,scooter along, roller skate along, use to race against their friends. Don't give your children sweets, crisps or drink to shut them up and then hide it so you don't have to pay. We do see this your know. I was given a list far longer then this but sad to sorry rudeness seems to be a two way thing nowadays.

I'm sorry dorsetpent, but I can't help at the kids and the wide aisles thing.

I can sympathise a bit with the mobile phone thing. Its sod's law that they will ring you just as its your turn at the checkout.

Who the f--- licks their money?!

Am I the only person on the planet who turns her mobile phone off when she goes into shops?

Am I the only person on the planet who doesn't have a mobile phone?

Emergencies only for me, and even then I'm not sure how to use it....never sent a text in my life either...

Wouldn't be without my phone now (never thought I'd say that) but agree that it is appallingly rude to have a phone conversation and ignore the person in front of you who is trying to provide a service. If it happens to me, I say 'Excuse me' to the assistant, answer the phone to say I'll call back asap, apologise and continue with the transaction. I loathe poor and rude service but agree with dorset that sometimes it is the customer who displays the rudeness.

In my local Post Office they have a large prominent sign which states that they like to give their customers their full attention when serving and therefore anyone who is having a conversation on their mobile phone when they get to the counter will be asked to step to one side to finish it whilst the person behind is served and then TO GO TO THE BACK OF THE QUEUE! I have never seen anyone approach the counter using their phone since the sign went up!

I would never think to turn it off when I go in shops baggy! Luckioy, I get texted more than 'phoned. The only time I did get caught when at the tills (in M and S) it was Ocado trying to get me to renew my delivery contract with them. They did NOT get my full attention.

jinglej people lick their notes when getting them out of their purses and hand you the licked portion. - and it may sound funny the idea of kids racing up and down the aisles but it aint for obvious reasons. As an Internet Shopper I push a large 6 crated trolley and it doesn't have an immediate stop. Also in my area we have a large numer of elderly infirm people and I have seen a few near misses and two accidents. Some mums walk into the shop and just concentrate on their shopping and let their children do what they like. As for the mobile ring during shopping, we can tell if it's a business call and understand that - sometimes the customer even apologises!!! However, most callers are just B-sing with their friends and if someone calls you, you say I'm at the check I'll call you right back. Just as em has said in the way she deals with her mobile ringing. Love the Post Office sign by the way - can't see us being allowed to do that.

I do agree with dorsetpennt - politeness does have to be a two-way thing.
We are all entitled to respect from fellow humans and should also give that respect to others. I hope I do but I shall try to be more aware in future.

That Post Office sign is wonderful

Actually, my phone is usually off. It's an emergency phone and for the occasional text to say I've arrived home. DD2 once texted me: "Is your phone ever on?" and I replied a week or so later: "No". I need it at Cubs so I can contact parents if need be and I've used it twice to call emergency services. It's about ten years old and has no extras such as camera and wotnot. It is a useful thing for emergencies but that's all I need it for.

I can't get mobile reception where I live, so rarely use mine. It is only tucked into my bag when I'm out and about for use in an emergency. I can't think of the last time I used it.
I do like them though, as when I'm in the States my son gives me his which is like having a wonderful new toy which works everywhere! ;-) ....I could become hooked!

I went to our small town weekly market a couple of weeks ago, there was a new stall there from a farm about 20 miles away. The stall-holder was on his mobile phone when I approached and he was serving the customer in front of me. I kept thinking he would end his call at any moment and attend to us but he served the two of us one handed (weighing out bacon and sausages!) and took our money and was still on the call when I walked away! I dont think he was the actual owner of the farm and I felt like phoning the farm and complaining but of course I didnt - should I?

Woody, you could get in touch with the farm, perhaps, and ask if it was a personal or a business call. It's possible the farm had called him, I suppose, but you'd think they'd have cut it short if they'd realised he had customers!

I hate it when shop folk tidy up after you. You look at a cardi and replace it, but not to the satisfaction of the assistant who bristles over and tidies it up; you check out a scarf and the bristling one arrives to place it at precisely the right angle. Can't bear it - walkout every time. Also hate it when some snotty youngster looks at you as if you have crawled out from under a very slimy stone: how common is that! Add to that the orange folk who sniff at your skin when you look for make up. Revenge of the grannies needed!

I think it's so disrespectful to serve someone without looking at them - give them their change and receipt while looking in the opposite direction as if the customer is of no value. Now, I have a little trick up my sleeve. I don't take my change. I just stand there and wait until the person realises and looks at me, then I take my change, smile and say thank you. My son thinks I'm making a fuss about it and that the check-out staff are probably tired and bored but I know he wouldn't behave like that to others. There's no excuse for it.

borstalgran - "the orange folk who sniff at your skin"! Why do they need to do that? And why are they orange?!

I haven't been in Boots for a while.

I know people shoplift, but I hate it when an assistant obviously gravitates towards me when I am perusing the goods and follows me round at a distance of a couple of feet. I have in the past told them that I am not in the business of taking without paying and on others, I have just walked out and gone elsewhere. In our village there is an art shop run by an extremely strange man who immediately appears from the nether regions of the shop when anyone enters and follows them about - the shop is about 15' x 10'. I have only ever bought a birthday card there as I feel so uncomfortable - he knows who I am and if I did nick anything he would know where I lived anyway

I hate it when shop assistants make assumptions about what you can afford. I like to be comfortable and often shop in jeans and trainers but sometimes when I am browsing an assistant will say " it is expensive" I am in the fortunate position of being able to afford anything I want and don't take kindly to people assuming it is beyond my reach.

Many years ago I went into the 'posh' department store to buy cream gloves. When the assistant deigned to notice me and break off her conversation with her colleague i said 'I'm looking for a pair of light weight cream gloves - I think I am a size 7'. She looked me up and down and said 'We don't sell cheap gloves' to which I replied that I did not want cheap gloves, I needed a pair that would match my newly purchased burnt orange and cream dress and jacket as gloves were de rigeur at the Royal Garden Party! She then looked at me as if I were something the cat had dragged in and, without opening a single drawer, announced that they had no cream gloves in stock!!!!

Still reeling from this I went to buy a hat in the 'posh' hat shop where the three assistants all buzzed around me. I think I tried on every hat they had and the three of them were falling about laughing at how daft I looked in every single one. They were right - I always look ridiculous in a hat - but I did feel they should have restrained themselves somewhat.

I took the short cut through Woolworths to the bus station and a straw sun hat in the exact shade of burnt orange caught my eye. This hat, trimmed with £1 worth of ribbon was the one I CARRIED to the garden party - it was never on my head! The very old, but pretty pair of white lace gloves, found in the back of a drawer by my mum and dyed cream by boiling up in tea, perfectly completed my outfit.

I do hope her Majesty is not a Gransnet lurker (though she is well qualified to be here) and will never know my secret shame.

The shame is that you should have felt ashamed, granny23! If your outfit was right for the occasions, there's nothing to feel ashamed about.