[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Walmart Again (Page 1 of 3)
Posted: 3/3/2008 1:57:34 PM EDT
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consumerist.com/362866/detained-and-harassed-at-walmart-for-not-showing-a-receipt Consumerist team Tip Your Editors: [email protected] Editor: Ben Popken | Email | AIM Senior Editor: Meghann Marco Email | AIM receipt controversy Detained And Harassed At Walmart For Not Showing A Receipt walmartsadman.jpgReader J was detained and harassed by some Walmart employees on his way out of the store the other day. J had already put his receipt inside his wallet after purchasing a $25 shower rack when a Walmart employee demanded to see his receipt. J declined and continued exiting the store. That's when things got weird. First, he was grabbed by a Walmart employee, then another customer started pushing him back inside the store. Yesterday (2-28-08) late afternoon I bought a $25 shower rack at the Wal-mart in [redacted] New Hampshire, and then tucked the receipt safely inside my wallet so I wouldn't lose it in case I had to return the item. The cashier did not bag the shower rack, so after I was done at the register I picked up my item and headed for the door. As I was approaching the door, the receipt checker Bob said, "Do you have your receipt?" To which I responded, "Yes, it's in my wallet" and I kept walking towards the door. Behind me, I could hear him yell "Sir! Sir! I need to see your receipt!", but being an avid Consumerist reader, I knew I didn't need to stop, so I kept walking. Bob ran up in front of me and stood between the slider doors, blocking my exit and budging me back inside. Appalled that the Wal-mart employee had just touched me, I said "excuse me", but Bob refused to budge, demanding again to see my receipt. I attempted to walk around him, but he kept stepping in front of me, and I would bounce off of him. Now, I was bigger than Bob, but I didn't wish to get physical and blow the situation out of proportion. At this point however, a random male customer came to Bob's assistance blocking the exit and pushing me back inside. The customer, who was bigger than me, told me to show Bob my receipt. When I refused, the customer responded with "Maybe I'm a cop". So now I have Wal-mart employee Bob and a customer impersonating a police officer physically blocking my exit and budging me back inside when I try to press by them. I was scared. I repeatedly asked the two of them if I was free to go, to which Bob said, "No, you need to show me your receipt." At this point a female employee shows up (I think her name was Cindy) and joins in telling me that I need to show my receipt. The police officer-impersonating customer disappears at this point, but Bob is still physically rebuffing my attempts to exit. I argue with the female employee for a while, getting nowhere, but for some reason Bob FINALLY stops pushing me back when I try to walk past him, and at this point I consider my illegal detainment to have ended. As I am outside the store and about to walk away, the female employee says something to the extent of "Fine, we'll just write down your license plate number and tell the police you were shoplifting!" Now, due to the nature of my work, I cannot get in trouble with the police, and any arrest, regardless of my guilt, could cost me my job. So at this point, I responded to her with "Are you kidding!!?? You're going to lie to the police?" She shrugged, and walked back inside. I followed her, demanding to know what her name was, and although she didn't tell me, I think her nametag said "Cindy". Currently standing back inside Wal-mart near the exit, I whipped out my cell phone and called 1-800-Walmart, and reported what just happened to someone at corporate. At this point there was a lot of onlookers because of the commotion, and I was extremely embarrassed. Anyways, I pulled out my receipt in order to read the person at corporate the store number, and I could see the look of surprise on the other employees' faces. The corporate phone jockey took my name, number, and said someone would get back to me. After I hung up, I switched my phone to camera mode, looked at Bob who was still standing a few feet away from me, said "Smile, Bob", and snapped his picture (attached). At this point, General Manager David arrived on the scene, and told me that I can't take pictures of his employees, that it's a violation of their privacy (Hah!). I explained to David what just went down, and how it was not acceptable for his employees to lay their hands on me and to threaten me with making a false police report. I was actually surprised with the following discussion I had with David, who was nothing but professional and sympathetic. He understood how completely wrong his employees were, claimed that he'd review the security cameras (yeah right), and that his employees definitely needed some "retraining". I thanked David for understanding, shook his hand, and went home. I'm still waiting for the call from corporate. Wal-mart needs to understand just how much is at stake when their employees illegally detain customers. Their employees are literally putting their lives on the line. What happens when a customer is carrying for self-defense and fears for his life when a Wal-mart employee illegally detains him? Is it really worth it, Wal-mart? I'm considering making a police report about the situation, but I'm not sure I want Bob arrested. Sure, I think that what he did was criminal, but he was just a below-average-intelligence, under-paid, and under-trained employee trying to do his job. Should I make the report? |
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I can't speak for the current situation, but when I was in LP 12 years ago, the extent of employee training was "Use your common sense". Nobody who had the power to change that would admit to a problem. It looks like it has gotten worse, judging from the coordinated efforts of the employees. |
Why didn't you place a call to 911 as soon as they physically made contact with you. As soon as you have explained your position to 911 you have a record of the incident and I would at that point in time inform them that you intend to defend yourself. They would've had a hell of a time down playing the audio from 911. 
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Why give the poor dude working at WalMart such a hard time? If you don't like stores that check your receipts, shop elsewhere. Are they selective about who they check, or do they check everyone? If they check everyone, I don't care, since I'm not being singled out. |
Why kid? Just do it. That's why they invented the sap. 
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Yup, Ive moved on to stores that dont do crap like that. When it happend to me it was always when I did the same thing, stuck it in a pocket or stuffed it in my wallet and now I have to dig everything out. Forget that. I will just shop somewhere they dont do that. |
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I don't know you ask me for a reciept you are acusing me of stealing! If you see me stealing by all means question me/call the police. I am not a thief and take offense to being treated like one. Last time I had an issue I asked for the manager and explained why I am returning the item I just purchased and will not shop there anymore. |
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It's kind of like a police check point....how do you feel about those? I, personally, don't like them as I feel violated.
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| I usually just show the reciept, its alot less hassle. I really only use walmart for ammo purchases because all the dealers in my area are OUTRASGEOUS... But I do understand the point at not showing your recipet, and especially if some A** bag pushed me, man that now would take some restraint. |
So Walmart hires some shitbrick to do nothing but check the receipts of people walking away from the registers. This guys carrying one item, just left the register, and this useless f#$kstain of an employee thinks the only item on him is stolen. And you blame the OP. Maybe you need to reread the entire OP and you'll notice the manager was even apologetic. The only mistake I see is not documenting the encounter with 911 right before a drawdown. |
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I never show the receipt... all you need to do is make eye contact with the Walmart door Nazi and give a slight nod. Though I do think walking out without a bag is just ASKING to be hassled. When I worked at CVS when I was in college, we were told if the door alarm goes off to not even think of chasing the shoplifter as it wasn't worth it... |
I'm a quick study. I can read it once and figure out the guy doesn't indicate how far from the checkout the door was. All the checker may have seen is a person leaving with merchandise and no bag or visible recepit. Gotta go and stop by the store on the way home. Think I'll pick up a ham and walk out. If some f#$kstain of an employee tries to stop me.............. 
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Ha no shit those door alarms are a joke anyways. They go off so many times in one day the employees dont even care.... at least at lowes |
Most of the time when I shop at Wal-Mart, the people checking the receipts are elderly. I guess if you think they are "shitbricks" for working then you have some problems. Wal-Mart will generally check receipts if you have an item that is not bagged just to make sure. Is it honestly that hard to just show the receipt? No one is accusing you of stealing. What is the big deal? Some of you people need to really grow up. There are far more important things to worry about in this world than showing a piece of paper to someone. It takes maybe five seconds. I'm sure someone will have something witty to say about me having no problem with showing a receipt to an elderly, or minimum wage employee. I never feel like I'm being accused of shoplifting, and if you do, you might want to rethink that. The guy in the OP went through a lot of trouble that could have just been avoided had he just showed a store receipt. Seems to me he wasted far more time and just caused a huge scene over nothing. |
Achtung, Deine Papieren, Bitte!  |
+1 |
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I once wheeled two bicycles right out the front door with the receipt in my hand wrapped around the handlebars of one and all I got was a "Thank you for shopping at Wal-Mart" The next night, the same door Nazi, stood there and watched me pay for a bottle of shampoo and some BC powder and then demanded my receipt at the door. |
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Both parties acted foolishly in this case, imo. Unless the guy had never in his life until now shopped at a walmart, then he gets a pass for being a drama queen. In my experience walmart is passive at most when it comes to receipts. Of all the ones I've been to, they wont even ask if you just hold the receipt as you walk out, they see it and they're satisfied. They'll just smile and say have a nice day and I smile back and say the same. No reason to be a prick, especially if its an elderly person (which has been the case each time for me). If you've ever shopped a club store or a fry's electronics, they check every item on the receipt against the contents of your cart/bag and everyone that shops there already knows this, and nobody raises a stink unless they stole something or just want drama. Vote with your wallet if you don't like it. |
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After I told him the item was paid for and the reciept was in my wallet, I'd try to leave too. If I was blocked I'd give them 2 options. 1. Arrest me for theft and get the po po here NOW. 2. Step aside. If I'm detained, I'll go quietly, lay one hand on me without telling me I'm being arrested for theft and I'll defend myself as necessary. I garrantee one thing, Joe door greeter won't be too quick to stop the next guy when sees the contents of my pocket when I lay said heater on the security office desk in front of the cops. Of course I'd be a prick and say something like " it's a good thing I'm really NOT a criminal or you could have been dead right now huh?" WW Assholes.....and I used to be LP. You never stop someone unless you SEE them select, conceal, and exit with something unpaid. |
+1 If its not bagged I hold my receipt in my hand till I'm out the door. Life is easier when you think. |
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I have been asked to show my reciept a couple times, no big deal, here you go, have a nice bye. Of course I had bought DVD players and such, and payed in the electronics deptartment, so I can understand them asking when they see a guy walking out the door with a dvd player under his arm. Now when I buy DVDs I pay at the front registers and ask them to double chekc that the security chip is deactivated, cause I payed and I will not stop at the door if that alarm goes off, never had a problem. |
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I agree. Since the item was not bagged & no visible receipt, I think the employee was just doing his job, up to the point of pushing the customer back in the door. But none of that would have happened if the customer would have just shown his receipt. These Wal-Mart receipt checker threads just slay me! What is really the big deal of showing your receipt if asked, unless you really have something to hide? It's not about a violation of your privacy, it's about loss prevention IMO.
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Walmart is not trying to strip anybody of their dignity, or be a fascist store, they just don't want people stealing their shit. The PC crap some of you are spouting is the same crap that doesn't allow NYPD to stop "terrorist" looking people in the subway. For me it is very simple. If I want to look like a terrorist I would expect to be treated slightly less favorably, If I try walking out of a walmart with UNBAGGED item and no receipt in hand I would fully expect to be treated differently than the guy behind me. The fact that the guy refused, just makes him look MUCH more suspicious. I'm not comparing the two, I'm just saying the same principal applies. I mean no offense to any posters, I read your opinions. I thought you should hear mine. |
 Yes... Because the Gestapo and Wal-Mart door greeters are the exact same thing. Give me a freaking break. |
| Walk a mile in Bob's shoes. Here's some one with an item leaving the store without a visible receipt and he's trying to do his job. Not to say everything was done correctly by Bob, but then the customer wasn't trying to make things any easier either. The whole "do unto others..." thing had left the Wal-Mart building. The real shame is the entire situation was easy to avoid (have the receipt visible) and could have been easily been defused with a little human kindness... "Here's my receipt Bob. I understand your just doing your job, but here's a few pointers... Could you please call your manager." |