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. ”
Shopping cart?
Tell the cashier to tape or staple receipt on box.
Problem solved.
Sounds like a lib jerk wad.
Anyone who would browbeat a minimum wage store clerk just to feel superior is pretty scummy. I put myself in their place and imagine having to deal with obnoxious customers all day, then I treat them with as much respect as possible.
I have shopped at Wal-Mart for years and no one has ever asked to see a receipt on the way out the door. Maybe his store is in a bad neighborhood or something.
Walmart doesn’t have the freedom to control product loss in their store?
Wrong. WM policy is that the only people allowed to detain you is Loss Prevention and only then when the LP has witnessed you select the merchandise, retrieve it from the shelf, conceal the item (not applicable in this case) and then avoid the final point of purchase and then exit the store without offering to pay for the item. If the LP loses eye contact at anytime during his observation he/she is not to even talk to you let alone attempt to prevent you from leaving the store.
As to the door greater, WM policy strictly states that they are never to ask you for a receipt or try to prevent you from leaving the store unless the EAS (Electronic Article Surveillance) is activated. At that point the Door Greater can ask you for a receipt only to find out which register failed to deactivate the EAS device. However, if the customer refuses to offer the receipt the door greater must allow the customer to leave.
“My mom says at her Wal-Mart in Mississippi the receipt checker will only ask people who are not of her race.”
Hmmmmmm. And your Mom votes.......democrat? I suspect your Mom is spewing bravo sierra.
Happened to a lawyer friend in FL. The cashier was rushing off duty and forgot to give him his receipt (as shown on security tape.)
Store detained him at door for more than 10 minutes.
Settlement was low 5 figures.
I wouldn’t mess with Bruce Willis. He’ll kick your @ss.
He wasn’t being a jerlk and they were in fact wrong. Also in Tennessee you don’t have to put up with it either. I never have and never will. I had one guy follow me to my vehicle LOL.. You know when that alarm goes off {when I don’t even have any purchases} I’ve thought about grabbing my chest and falling to the floor in a fit yelling “turn it off turn it off” LOL...
While the libertarian streak in me usually sides with people such as this fellow, this does seem a bit extreme. What does it hurt to wave your receipt at an employee as you walk out the door with a high ticket purchase? Everyone knows its a loss prevention measure to prevent shoplifting, not some insidous scheme by “the man” to deprive you of your liberties. While I don’t doubt the fact that he was legally in the right, there is a time and place to pick your fights, but this isn’t it.
I guess this was due to it not being in a bag because I buy things at the back and walk out the store with no trouble. Surely, they could have put the receipt on the box. When I buy drinks at my grocery store, I ask for a sticker to be placed on the bottle.
The receipt checker or the customer?
I doubt it.
Years ago I was resistant to receipt checkers as the concept was foreign to me. One checker at CompUSA, I got to follow me into the parking lot to check my bag and receipt until he realized that he had deserted his post and ran back into the store.
I’m better now, but if a line forms at the exit as the checkers are so slow, I will continue on past them with my receipt raised up high and I have never been stopped doing that.
If the Wal*Mart Tyrds have an issue with customer’s not willing to show proof of what they’ve legally purchased, they can re-design their stores to make impossible the egress through the store to an exit from a section where they made a purchase.
I applaud his stand on principles. Too bad many FReepers have either no principles or are incapable of appreciating those who do.
I have worked as a cashier for a number of years, you would be shocked at the nerve of shoplifters. They will walk out the door with televisions just as casual as can be. A customer even “shopped” all around the store till she filled the cart to the top, then she tried to casually walk past the service desk and out the door. Fortunately, she was stopped before she could make it through the door.
This guy is just a self-righteous jerk making a big stink over a “principle” that doesn’t exist. I hope his next job is working with the public, then he will know what it is like dealing with morons like him all day.
You forgot ...it’s *senior* citizen Tuesday. ;D
Not according to the State’s law.
Should they have the right to inspect the contents of your car before you leave the parking lot?
LOL! At least you didn’t make excuses. Love it.
What does it hurt?
Where YOU draw your line is your business. Where the writer draws his is his.
At least he drew a line and didn’t allow others to define his parameters for living in a free society.
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