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. ”
I cannot believe what I am hearing here. The next step will be checking your pockets and bags. What if you have a coat on that is sold there? Got a receipt? What I buy with my money is mine! Yes I will shop somewhere else and pay more money if I have too(and I don’t have a lot of money).Are you people going to submit your DNA to shop there also? Or just Xray screening? Oownership is a key right. This reduces that right.
I haven't seen a receipt checker one time.
“Hmmmmmm. And your Mom votes.......democrat? I suspect your Mom is spewing bravo sierra.”
Careful how you speak of someone mother.
Most of the receipt checkers are in their 70's. Way to go Rick.
Sure proves that Wal*Mart is serious about preventing shoplifting.
/sarc
Typical of most liberals btw.
Which is why when my Costco membership expired I didn’t renew it. I don’t like being made to feel like a criminal.
If the checker’s sole job is loss prevention... the company needs better loss prevention, b/c the stuff is largely going out the back door with the employees/hired help.
Some checkers are nice...others on a power trip ...working their way into the TSA.
I would agree if it’s the government forcing you to do something. An enterprise that has certain rules of conduct, applies them the same way to all their customers (and its potential customers are aware of the requirement), and does not force you to do business with it, should be able to continue to set those rules of conduct.
I wish government asks for people’s identification to make sure they have the precious right to vote before they are allowed to do so.
You mean a truck actually came in this month to fill the usually almost empty shelves? Gosh there musta been something actually worth stealing on it. Seriously I wish they were as agressive at having fully stocked shelves again the way they used to be as they are with their security.
DBKP...my new tagline of late. ;-D
Exactly why people have such low opinions of attorneys.
Costco, BJ's, Sams Club, Walmart, CompUSA, Best Buy .... I doubt they are all doing it to make their shoppers feel like criminals.
Bingo! That's what all those posters above you simply don't understand. The law states you don't have to show a reciept so Walmart is playing Nazi with the sheeple. It's not the guy's fault there are shoplifters in the store. It's not the guy's fault Walmart doesn't have a more efficiant means to make sure merchandise was indeed paid for at x,y,z part of the store. It's the store's fault. Send the little door checker to escort electronics out of the store and they'd have a better customer relation. Once, I was stopped at the grocery store because my purse pinged the alarm. I don't know why, but they claimed it did. I was stopped at the door and escorted back to the office in front of everyone like a criminal. I told them to dump my purse out and show me and everyone whatever it was. They wouldn't and said for me to leave. What?!? You make a big deal out of it and then won't even look in my purse?!? I don't think so. I called my LE husband who was on shift so drove over to the store and hollered at them that if I was suspected of shoplifting they should have called the cops. They still refused to look in my purse and couldn't get rid of us quick enough. I think that was the last time they used their new little alarm and they quit having someone hang around the door. Talk about bad customer relations. In the parking lot, I went through my purse and found a ratty old allergy rx box that had a bar code on it so I'm guessing that was the cause of it all.
So you let a complete stranger have so much power over you He makes you feel like a criminal please
My point is if Wal*Mart is supposed to be “serious” about loss prevention, shoplifting, theft, etc., they’d do better than to have geriatrics and wheelchair-bound employees as greeters and interrogators.
I've had the alarm go off as I walked into a store. The door guy looked up at me, I looked at him... I think we both had the same "WTF?" expression on our faces. I walked out, turned around, walked back in, no alarm. Not a word was said by either of us. Just one of those things.
ROFLOLMF!!!
I wonder if he goes by Dick?
Nothing conservative about making an ass of yourself, unless you think Chris Matthews and Co. are right about us.
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