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A WALMART shopper has been left confused after talking with a store manager about why all self-checkouts have been scrapped.
Taking to Facebook, Charlie Hibdon from Irving, Texas, shared his disaster shopping experience at his local Walmart Supercenter and the bizarre conversation that followed.
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The shopper explained how a few years ago, the store in Las Colinas removed almost all of its traditional checkouts to make space for self-checkouts.
However, over the weekend, “literally overnight, they took them all out,” Hibdon explained in a post.
As a result, shoppers now have to go back to traditional checkout methods but this saw Hibdon and other Walmart customers forced to wait in line for around half an hour.
“Early Sunday morning there were only a handful registers open which caused long lines of 20 to 30 minutes wait times,” he explained.
The situation was so bad that he decided to ditch his cart and leave the store, but not before informing the manager on his way out.
‘GETTING WORSE’
She then allegedly revealed to him why the change had been made in the store but her reason left Hibdon scratching his head.
“The change came about by the corporate office because the store had lost so much money to theft over the last year and it was getting worse,” the shopper explained.
“On the way home I had to scratch my bald head and wonder how it was possible for so much theft to take place at the self-checkout that they would close all of them down.”
He explained how when he had been forced to use self-checkouts at the store a couple of times he had “immediately on top of things.”
Hibdon went as far as to say that their reaction which saw employees search his bags “made me feel like a criminal.”
“Not only that but there would be a video playing on the screen showing me not properly scanning my item,” he added.
“All I can say is those self-checkout thieves are a lot smarter than me!”
Analysis carried out last year by software company Grabango found that self-checkouts cause 16 times more losses than cashier checkouts, according to CSP Daily News.
Latest self-checkout changes
Retailers are evolving their self-checkout strategy in an effort to speed up checkout times and reduce theft.
Walmart shoppers were shocked when self-checkout lanes at various locations were made available only for Walmart+ members.
Other customers reported that self-checkout was closed during specific hours, and more cashiers were offered instead.
While shoppers feared that shoplifting fueled the updates, a Walmart spokesperson revealed that store managers are simply experimenting with ways to improve checkout performance.
One bizarre experiment included an RFID-powered self-checkout kiosk that would stop the fiercely contested receipt checks.
However, that test run has been phased out.
At Target, items are being limited at self-checkout.
Last fall, the brand surveyed new express self-checkout lanes across 200 stores with 10 items or less for more convenience.
As of March 2024, this policy has been expanded across 2,000 stores in the US.
Shoppers have also spotted their local Walmart stores restricting customers to 15 items or less to use self-checkout machines.
The data found a loss rate of 3.5% for self-checkouts compared to just 0.21% at manned registers.
Meanwhile, retail theft currently costs the industry over $100 billion a year and this is predicted to increase to $140 billion by 2025, according to Capital One Shopping.
BACKLASH
As Walmart stores across the country roll out changes to self-checkouts including some having item restrictions, some shoppers refuse to go there.
The retailer recently introduced a 15-item limit at self-checkouts at a number of its stores, forcing those with more to go to manned checkouts.
This is not only to improve efficiency but also to tackle the issue of theft.
But many have claimed that the big-box retailer isn’t staffing them enough to account for the number of shoppers who would have previously gone to a self-checkout.
The long lines that snake around the shops as a result of the change have customers reconsidering their shopping habits as some fume that it is “like Black Friday.”
“Online shopping and pickup is the way to go to Walmart!” one shopper said in the comments to Hibdon’s post.
Meanwhile, another shopper followed in Hibdon’s footsteps and abandoned his cart with $300 worth of groceries inside at the checkout.
While major chains like Walmart are doing a self-checkout U-turn by either entirely removing them or reducing their service, one grocery store has made a surprising change to their checkout process.
What is Walmart’s Scan and Go?
Walmart’s Scan and Go was made to save time for shoppers
Walmart’s Scan and Go system was created to help customers scan items as they shop, pay, and leave without waiting in long checkout lines.
The retailer describes the new system to be done in a few easy steps:
- Customers first need to have the Walmart app downloaded on their phones with their location access enabled.
- On the Store Mode landing page, shoppers must click the Scan and Go option.
- Customers can scan each item and place them in their carts as they shop.
- At the end, they’ll be prompted to view the cart to make sure the quantity on the app matches the ones in their carts.
- Shoppers will press “Check Out” and head to a self-checkout kiosk.
- They’ll be prompted to scan the provided QR code at the register and confirm their payment method.
- Once the transaction is complete, shoppers can leave the store without worry.
