Supermarkets & large stores

When self-service tills first arrived, I made a point of politely mentioning my dislike of them and that they would ultimately take jobs but was usually patronisingly told that it would not be so. Think I was correct!

Our Waitrose does have one or two manned tills but it is encouraged that customers use the self-service tills and there is always a problem, necessitating the intervention of staff. Not just with me but almost every customer - the member of staff positioned there must walk miles, dashing from customer to customer (Waitrose's bonkers bonus scheme is partly to blame!).

We also have a Lidl and the self-service queues there are long. How is this a service to the customer?

One thought.... do you remember queues from tills to the back of supermarkets at busy festive times of the year?
Perhaps we should be grateful for the barcode system which has speeded things up a bit.

The first supermarket to open all their tills again could be on to a winner but (sigh), yes, prices would have to rise - again!

I’m another self scanner fan . I started during lockdown and it’s so much easier to pack as you go , instead of unloading at the till and then packing . Some cashiers are really speedy when scanning and then you struggle to pack quickly to keep up with them.
It’s also more hygienic as I’m the only one handling my stuff . And there’s very rarely a queue at the self scanning machines , whereas there’s always queues at the tills.

Ive been to Aldi and Sainsburys this morning. I had a heavy shop (compost) in Aldi so did not want to use self serve as the bags are heavy so used their manned checkout. Lovely man who did not stop chattering the whole time. Sainsburys was reasonably busy and only a couple of checkouts open. I went through the self serve with a high rise trolley, which was fine but there was not enough room really for my trolley and the packing side is too small once I had loaded my bag and needed room for animal food boxes. I prefer to use the manned checkouts unless I only have a couple of things and need to get through quickly. I do remember there used to be an under 10 or 8 items till.

I have to use a disable buggy to allow me to get round and choose my own things. I do use delivery for tins bottles and heavy things but I want to choose my own fruit and veg etc and get ideas of things for dinner etc. If I have a few things I can put them on the checkout and the staff put them into my bags which I give them first. I put things onto the checkout in a sensible order , heavy things first etc. Have a couple of bags so that I dont have a heavy bag to pick up at home and that works well. While the checkout person is putting the stuff through I move to the other end and get ready with card to pay etc so take no longer than other shoppers. I would not want, nos should I have to use self service, and I do buy on a market and at local butcher and baker , but would change supermarket if there was only self serve. I once went into a pub which I did not know and they said they only accepted cards. I then said cash is legal tender and we will go elsewhere, which we did. The assumption that everyone can have a card or wishes to and they can dictate is unacceptable. Besides many valid reasons people choose not to use cards , in our area there are several dales where you would not get any signal to be able to pay by card and there are no banks very close so cash is the only sensible thing in that area. The banks and stores have used the pandemic to push cards and self service at us. Whilst I have no problem with those who can and want to use them, to make cash buyers second class citizens is absolutely not acceptable to me.

Tenko

I’m another self scanner fan . I started during lockdown and it’s so much easier to pack as you go , instead of unloading at the till and then packing . Some cashiers are really speedy when scanning and then you struggle to pack quickly to keep up with them.
It’s also more hygienic as I’m the only one handling my stuff . And there’s very rarely a queue at the self scanning machines , whereas there’s always queues at the tills.

I agree with you. Bonus no listening to talking strangers.

I love selfscan checkouts! I don't have to mess around with queues and people, nor listen to cashiers having to make pleasantries. It's fine for those who prefer it. I don't.

I have mental health issues (granted more managed now than they manage me - however if your having to manage something it's still an issue in the first place) regarding anxiety and such.

I also love Tesco self scan, where you can pick up before starting your shopping. It means it's packed and ready to go and I've never had to queue for a machine.

Best thing for me. I know alot of people who use them for similar reasons, mental health issues or otherwise

I won’t use them on principle.
They are taking away jobs for people.

The thing I resent with the self scan checkouts is the video capture of everything you are doing. I once had the dreaded 'unexpected item in the bagging area' and when the assistant came she made me stand there whilst she watched back the video of everything I had done, to make sure I hadn't put an unscanned item in there. It was mortifying, and I felt on trial in front of other shoppers.

I do both, use a cashier for a large shop and self check out for a small basket. Have used one designed for trolleys, didn't like it as no sign telling you which side for unloading so put items on wrong side and had to move everything when a staff member came round and noticed what I had done. No offer to help. I'm with you.

I'm totally with you on this one. Only use self service if I only have a couple of items and in a hurry, otherwise I'd rather wait and keep someone in a job. The self scanners and I don't get on, they always play up and it's amazing how stressful that is. I also think it's nice to chat to the checkout person. Soon we'll become a society that one day won't know how to converse with others!

Absolutely hate self scan! Much prefer to go to manned till. Most of my friends and neighbours say the same thing, luckily our local supermarket has quite a few staff and no problems going to our manned tills

They should offer a discount or bonus voucher if you use the self checkout. They always alarm for me especially when using my own bag. I like Amazon Prime with no checkout. I wish they were larger and had trolleys

M0nica

My tactic is to point out how badly designed the self-service tills are and how unsuitable for large shops, especially if you have several bags to fill. I point out that if they want shoppers to use these tills they need to be designed to suit the size of shop the consumer is doing. If the customer has a large trolley full, they need a machine that you can get the full trolley one side and an empty trolley the other and transfer shopping from one to the other.

It is amazing how many times I can caause problems with the system if forced into using the self-service system when I do not want to.

What it needs is consumers to rise in non-violent protest by trying to make the machines adapt to their convenience, by the time every shopper on every self-service machine has made it necessary for them to have an assistant with them through out the self select process, for a month or two, they might have a re think.

"My" sainsburys used to have trolley sized self checkouts but they took them out sometime during "lockdown" and have put more of the small ones in. Last time I used them I noticed load had "card only" notices on them, I had cash I wanted to use and picked one without the notice. Then got told off by the assistant as it wasn't a cash one and I should have known because all that row were card only. Sigh.

To be honest I usually use the scan as you go round wands these days. Because it saves MY time packing straight into my bags and not wasting time queueing and having to take my stuff out of the trolley and then re pack it.

I only use live shops assistants because I like to have a chat as they're scanning, Apparently Lidl and Aldi employ only people who are really fast on the tills.. and they still manage to be smiley and chatty.. it makes shopping so much more pleasant having personal contact and I use the market where the traders are always upbeat

I have used self-service and self scanning since forever. I don't have time to queue up and empty all my stuff only to pack it up again.

Lidl near us certainly employ fast checkout operators. They are always smiley and polite but not chatty, even when the customer in front of me had bought £128.30 of goods, the conversation was only about need for an extra bag and a leaking package.

‘Am I just being awkward to resent having to put my shopping through the self serve?’ Not at all MacCavity2. Fair enough for those who like it, but our local (large) Sainsbury’s make it virtually impossible not to. There are only four tills anyway with two massive areas for self serve for baskets and trolleys, but no tills open at all after about 6 or 7pm. I will use the self serve but my husband won’t and asks them to open a till, which they always do, with good grace but it’s a big deal finding somebody etc. There’s also a huge risk of making an innocent error, which is always my fear. I also feel offended when they pick on me for the ‘random’ check. We are literally doing somebody’s job, yet we don’t get staff discount plus we run the risk of getting in potential trouble if a mistake is made.

Those machines hate me - they don’t like my bag either 😳

I shop at Lidl (in Belgium). There was a self-scan area with 4 automatic check-outs. There were so many hickups, fails and mistakes they needed to have a live person on standby permanently. Now the selfscan area is gone, two extra cashregisters added. Sometimes only one or two cashiers needed, but if there is too much of a queue they open an extra register. Everybody happy 🤩

I think you are being unreasonable, but that is just my opinion.

Self-serve cash desks are a boon, as there is never a queue, and they always seem to have the correct prices coded in - which although the cash-desks with assistants are using the same bar codes for some reason is not the case there.

I would genuinely prefer shop assistants to be on the shop floor able to assist one to find things, as it seems to have become fashionable to stick stuff anywhere instead of having a logical progression of wares on shelves.

For instance, why should salt be as far away as possible from sugar, corn-flour, flour, vinegar etc?

And as supermarkets have floor to 6ft high shelves, I appreciate there being some 5' 9" assistant at hand to lift things down from the top shelves, as I am 5' 1" and the day is fast approaching where I will need help getting up again if I have to lift something off the bottom shelf!

I went to a Sainsbury’s and no cashier on checkout - I refused to put a large trolley of food through self serve and demanded a cashier- eventually they found one. Dreadful - they didn’t like it - what’s happening to service - non existent

I like self scan myself, but my elderly parents find it extremely confusing. I hate the fact that no-one thinks of the generation who grew up during the war when they get rid of banks/manned tills/etc, etc.

Nannafirework, they don’t like me either. I can bring it to a halt with my first items. If I have fewer than five items I use the tobacco/ return counter.
I’ve had a Sainsbury’s delivery weekly since April 2020 but decided to try our local branch (five minutes away) only to discover only two manned checkout and many self serve. I decided to stick to deliveries in future. Also thought I’d try their smart price self scanning app. but all of the price reduced items were non existent 😀
I have to say I’ve been very fortunate with deliveries only three unsuitable substitutions in three years.

Germanshepherdsmum

I have regular supermarket deliveries and also use small local shops. I’m done with shopping in supermarkets.

I am too except for M&S and I certainly make their bells ring unintentionally of course.
One open till, I was pointed towards the self-service, side shelf not big enough for bags so I lifted one off and all the bells went off, then it asked if I had used my own bags and again would not accept my answer and the bells again. I asked an assistant for help she spoke to me as if I was a two-year-old so I spoke back and said they need better instructions and a bigger area to keep the bags on once you have filled them.
She tutted at me as if I was a moron so I told her I would like it reported and while she was at it could she report the broken machine on the only till open. It has been broken for months and rarely works, you always have to put your number in manually.
If you didn't feel your age before you went in you certainly do coming out.

These self serving tills don’t like me - always have unexpected items in the baggage area. My 4 year old GD said last week “you’re not very good at this are you G’ma “