"Self checkout" Topic

As more and more stores convert to self checkout I have started using this little hack to save time: if you have item's differing only by flavor, for example you have a grape, orange, pineapple and strawberry mix or whatever just scan one item four times: it's the same price anyway.

Since I am not a professional checkout person or bagger, it saves me time.

True, the price will be the same but the inventory
bar code might be different for different flavors,
hence the store's inventory balance on items
might not be updated correctly, which could mean
an order point might be triggered when not necessary.

Multi-scans of a single item to reflect multi-purchases
was discussed by the engineering team during RPOST
development (Retail-Point-Of-Sale-Terminal)

Well, that's the store's problem, isn't it?

The customer is going to do what is convenient for the customer. It's not up to the customer to do what is convenient for the store.

Some chains have a monitoring system that flags this and halts the transaction until an employee can come to verify. Guess how long that takes.

Can't do that on UK self service checkouts as first item needs to be placed onto packing platform (scales) before next item can be scanned.

But that's when you use one hand to hold the scanning item item and the other to put the second/third/etc. item onto the scale/into the bag.

Jim

At that point, how much time are you really saving? You still have to take the items out of your basket or cart and bag them.

Make sure you scan the flavor you like the most so it doesn't run out.

I use the self scan only when I have to. I do the multiple scan thing also. I think you should get a 5% discount for doing the checkout person's job. But then they don't open many regular checkout lines to force you to self checkout.

To be clear, my point above is that it's up to the store to create an effective mechanism for proper handling of inventory, and accusing the customer of "not doing it right" is a very poor approach to business. The failure of the store to have the foresight to see that someone might indeed just swipe the same equivalent item over and over is not the customer's fault, and not on the customer to either foresee or correct. I don't work to serve the store, the store works to serve me.

Of course, a point of purchase inventory system is not a good way to handle inventory in the first place, as it fails to at all deal with losses due to breakage and theft. The only way to do effective, foolproof inventory is to find and count the actual item on the shelf. You then compare that to the checkout data and correct for obvious situations like the OP's example.

I'd be surprised to learn that the large chains which offer self-checkout haven't thought that through and put in place those very systems.

how much time are you really saving?

It is sometimes quite a bit: especially if Mrs Elmo moves the items and I keep scanning.

I also love "the gun"

I will stand in line for exorbitant periods just to avoid self check out. It is good feeling like I am saving one person's job. Home Depot is on my no go list for the same reason. the Future sucks!

I love a cartoon I saw where the store checker is advising a customer that, "self-checkout is right over here." To which she replies, "no thank you, I don't work here."

Self check out breaks someones rice bowl.

no thank you, I don't work here.

There is also, "I could also self checkout at home on my computer."

Unfortunately we don't have Peapod or whatever around us.