Posted on 03/11/2011 7:51:18 PM PST by Daffynition
Rick is the Gandhi of receipt-check deniers. He writes in with a story of how he bought a 37 inch TV from Walmart and was able to successfully say no to the receipt checker blocking his way with his body. Rick did this by calmly and reasonably explaining his position to the assistant manager who showed up and by ignoring everyone around him who was trying to provoke him. Sometimes the quietest voice speaks the loudest.
Rick writes:
“ After work I stopped by the Walmart to pick up a TV for my girlfriend. After circling the whole store in search of the bathroom before realizing it was right next to the entrance, I made my way back to the Electronics section and picked out a TV quickly. I wanted a midsize Vizio, so I chose the 37" 1080p Eco model. I purchased the TV with my debit card at one of the rear registers about 20 feet away, and walked to the front of the store carrying the box in both hands.
I made it through the first set of doors into the front atrium of the store, but before reaching the outer doors I heard a man say "Sir?" I turned and faced Tony, the receipt checker.
Tony: May I see your receipt? Me: No thanks! Tony: Oh, ok.
I turned and continued walking towards to automatic doors. Tony called again, so I turned back.
Tony: No, I need to see your receipt. Me: No thank you! Tony: What do you mean? Me: I mean no thanks; I'm walking to my car with my purchase. Tony: Well, I need to see your receipt. Me: I just purchased this TV in the back of the store. I don't need to show you a receipt. Tony: Yes, you need to show me your receipt. Me: Actually, state law dictates that once I pay for something, I don't need to show ownership of it. I just paid for this TV, the receipt is in my pocket, but my hands are full, and I don't feel like getting it out. I'm going to leave now, thank you.
At this point Tony has positioned himself between me and the door. As I step towards the door he places his hand on the box in my hands and lightly pushes back, preventing me from moving.
Me: You cannot prevent me from leaving the store with my purchase. Please move out of the way. Tony: I can't just let you leave the store with a TV without checking your receipt.
At this point a woman, who has been standing with her family near some vending machine starts throwing snide comments at me such as "Just show him the receipt; it's not that hard" and "god, you don't have to be such a prick about it." This continues on for the rest of my "stay" here, but I choose to ignore her.
Me: Are you unlawfully detaining me? Tony: I just want to need to see your receipt before you leave. Me: I have paid for this, I have the receipt, but as I have said, state law protects my right to not need to prove ownership of something I have purchased. You cannot physically prevent me from leaving the store. I am now going to leave the store.
I try and step around Tony, but he again pushes on the box in my hands to prevent me from moving anywhere.
Me: Are you illegally detaining me? Tony: Yeah, if that's what you want to call it. (Realizing he just said something bad) Listen, Walmart policy says that I need to check your receipt. Me: Then Walmart's policy is in violation of Virginia state law. They should have informed you that you don'tneed to see a receipt. Tony: (Misunderstanding me) How could they have told me already that you'd bought this? Me: No, when Walmart trained you, they should have informed you that you can't force people to show their receipts. You can only ask. Tony: I'm just a first-class worker, I don't know about any of that.
Now I am starting to fill like the prick the woman near us keeps calling me. This atrium has two exterior doors on opposite sides, so I turn around ready to walk towards the other door to leave, but another receipt checker has walked up at this time. I can't remember her name, so I'll refer to her as S, since I believe that's what her name started with.
S asks me what's going on, and I explain that I'd like to take my purchase to my car, but Tony is demanding me to show a receipt. S agrees with Tony that I need to show my receipt for "purchases like this". I give her the same explanation I gave Tony, that by state law, I don't need to prove ownership of something I just purchased.
Me: You are welcome to check the security tapes to verify that I just purchased this TV at one of the registers in the back, but I don't need to prove ownership. S: You need to show your receipt before you leave the store. Me: According to state law, I don't. S: Well I'm sorry, sir, but that's Walmart policy. Me: Then Walmart's policy is in violation of state law. S: It's not that hard to show a receipt. Me: No, it's not hard at all, but state law says I don't have to. I'm going to leave the store now. S: No, the store manager is coming. Me: When is the store manager coming? S: The assistant store manager... Me: When is the assistant store manager coming? S: Yeah, she'll be right here. Me: Ok.
I finally put the box on the floor. (Woman: "Now just take four fingers, put them in your pocket, take out the receipt..." I'm mentally yelling at her, but completely ignore her externally.) After waiting (what felt like) 2 minutes the assistant store manager appeared around the corner. S walked towards her, and I waved at the store manager to show I wasn't threatening nor uncomfortable with her arrival (in fact I welcomed it.) S pointed towards me and walked somewhere else, but Tony stayed behind me the whole time. I can't remember the assistant store manager's name, either, so I'll refer to her as M.
M: Hello, sir, how are you today? Me: I'm doing fine, but I'd like to leave the store with my purchase. M: Well, what's the problem? Me: Tony, here, says I can't leave unless I show my receipt. M: Do you have your receipt? Me: Yes, but I just purchased the TV in the back of the store and had my hands full with the box, so I didn't want to take it out. Tony physically prevented me from leaving the store. Now I'm refusing to show me receipt for the principle of the matter. State law dictates that I do not need to prove ownership of something I have purchased, meaning I do not need to show a receipt. M: Hmm. (She thinks for a bit.) Where did you buy the TV? Me: In the back of the store. M: (Thinks a bit more.) There are two registers in the back. Me: *sigh* I purchased the TV at the register closest to the front of the store. There was a man checking out with his family at the register nearest the rear of the store. I paid for the TV with my debit card, and then picked up the TV myself. The cashier asked if I was going to carry it, and I said "yes, it's light." I then walked to the front of the store. M: (Thinks a bit more, taken aback at the detailed report.) Ok, sir, it is your choice to leave the store with your purchase. Me: Thank you.
I pick up the box, turn around, and tell Tony to "have a good night" as I exit the store.
The thing is, I bear no ill will towards the Walmart employees. They were simply not educated as to their role and lawful restrictions. I thought Walmart would have fixed this issue after all of the heat they've gotten about it over the years, but clearly this store didn't get an internal memo. The situation could have definitely gotten worse. I'm almost glad the second checker arrived, as I don't know what Tony would have done had I tried to exit the store through the other door. (He is an older gentleman, so I don't think he would have tried to tackle me, but if he had actually placed a hand on me or otherwise gotten more physical, I would have been placed in a very awkward position.)
I don't think an email to a Walmart executive will do anything. I'm open to any advice on how to inform this store's management about the situation, so that they can properly train their employees. I feel badly about my interaction with Tony and M, since the honestly believed they were doing their jobs. I feel like I should stop by and give them gift cards for performing admirably in the tough situation Walmart has put them in, but that might be received poorly. ”
You have to understand that 75% of this loss prevention is about EMPLOYEE Theft. Maybe as high as 90%.
They could still slap the stickers on and steal, you see. Or help others steal.
Not my problem though. I'm the guy that tries to return money I find before keeping it.
Even THAT should be stopped.
There's no excuse for the receipt nazis.
If people KNEW what WalMart did to them with the Cameras they'd never ever shop there.
Actually People are wrong to do this for one thing yes you may have bought, it you may own it, but untill you make it out the door the store still has custody of it thats the law period. They do this simply for insurance purposes if you run over some in the store or something they are the ones to pay.
That's false imprisonment/illegal detention.
Wrong.
When money changes hands it is yours period. You don’t even NEED a receipt.
Yup...make us into docile sheep, willing to obey any authority who commands us to do something...
Yuck.
Ed
For reporting a suspected theft? I don't think so.
No. no I don’t. Still have marks from the last Golden.
BTW your lab is a good looking pup.
Go picket Walmart. Fight the system, dude.
Or, go to Walmart and make purchases, leave and refuse to show your receipt when asked. Then, sue. Repeatedly.
It’s folks like you who make America great. /s
Bingo. Frankly, I'm more than a little surprised to see so many on a Conservative political discussion forum assuming this guy's a WalMart hater and calling this guy an asshole for standing up for his rights.
This should be a much more thought-provoking thread than it is. Yours was the first post that was. Thank you.
There, fixed it for you. Sorry you're so "inconvenienced" by those who aren't as compliant as you are.
You got that right. What has this forum come to anyway?
That happened to me once. I was at the airport in Brussels, Belgium when it happened. It was a duty-free shop that sold books, cd's and magazines. As I walked in the alarm went off. The clerk at the cash register looked up as I walked in, but didn't say a word.
As I walked out, the alarm went off again. I was in her sight the whole time, so as I turned around, looked at her and shrugged, she said to me in her best english "something you have wasn't scanned" - or something to that effect. Not knowing what she meant I walked back into the store, and set the alarm off AGAIN. At that point she motioned to my luggage bag and helped me find the item that was setting off the alarm: a Stevie Ray Vaughan CD I'd owned for 10+ years. Apparently the store I'd purchased it at forgot to disable the "security" on the CD case. We removed the CD from the case, ran the case over a device to disable the security tag, and that fixed it.
Sometimes stuff just happens, and I was actually glad this Belgian airport store clerk was as nice and friendly as she was.
bookmarking
I love Terry Gilliam! His MP animations were great, and Brazil is awesome, pure Kafka! And Metropolis.
Did you ever see the Python skit where an Englishman bought a refrigerator, and a bureaucrat came to his door, telling him he needed to measure the kitchen before it could be plugged in? Then a bureaucrat came behind him and told him he needed to examine the hinges of the refrigerator before it could be used, then a bureaucrat came behind HIM with another clipboard and form to fill out, testing the guy’s electrical plugs, then behind him, another bureaucrat.
Then the camera pulled back, slowly, showing a line of hundreds and hundreds of bureaucrats lined up outside the guy’s door, each carrying a clipboard and another form to fill out and sign...it was hilarious!
Ed
Not sure about your state but the zip code here is used for county taxes.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.