Why is Walmart allowed to ask to see our receipts??? (Howe: credit card, home)

[sapphire]

I guess I roll with the theory that life is too short to worry about stuff like this. If they want to make sure I didn't jack a dvd or a can of green beans, then more power to them. I know I didn't, so I don't feel guilty about anything. I make sure the prices scan properly! Looks like there is no trust on either side.

[djw]

I seem to only ever get stopped for a receipt check if I have something not bagged, like a huge multi-roll pack of paper towels or a big bag of cat food or something.
Figured it gives the "Greeters" something to do, a sense of purpose, whatever...

[gwrober]

Originally Posted by Mister

I think that's the case for public stores since ownership of the items was transferred to you at the time of the sale, but "private" clubs like Sam's and Costco are a different story. I'm fairly certain that members sign an agreement that allows the stores to check your purchases.

A friend of mine found this out the hard way and lost her Costco membership by refusing to let them examine her cart.

That's a very good point - I haven't been a member of one of those in some time. Definitely check your member agreement!

I understand the desire by the company to reduce theft. It makes perfect sense to do so - but they risk making us feel like criminals for nothing!

[Bo]

I suspect that retail theft is increasing dramatically as a result of the tightening economy. I've noticed visible security guards at my favorite Target stores, which I'd seen before at other Target stores, but not these particular stores.

[Chaka]

You can always choose not to shop at Walmart.

[Deep Forest]

Loss prevention.........the thieves have come up with alot of innovative ways to separate WalMart (and others) from their goods. If you've noticed now at WalMart when you use the self-checkout they have someone there watching you like a hawk because the thieves found out they could scan every other item and get away only paying for half of what they take......

[smuboy86]

Wal-mart is absolutely not allowed to check you receipts! See this article at the consumerist.com Success Stories: EECB Stops Improper Searches At New Mexico Walmart (http://consumerist.com/351148/eecb-stops-improper-searches-at-new-mexico-walmart - broken link)

[Spock's Beard]

Originally Posted by Deep Forest

Loss prevention.........the thieves have come up with alot of innovative ways to separate WalMart (and others) from their goods. If you've noticed now at WalMart when you use the self-checkout they have someone there watching you like a hawk because the thieves found out they could scan every other item and get away only paying for half of what they take......

You won't believe the crap I've heard people bragging about on various message boards. Thieves are smarter than that.

Smart thieves take one toy, take it out of the package, substitute it for a similar but lesser-value toy, and return for refunds. So it's not unheard of to see a Star Wars or GI Joe figure with some other figure in the package.

Smart thieves buy broken video game systems, cameras, IPod's, HDTV's, etc. off of Ebay for nothing, buy the same model at the store, and then return the broken system in the box of the new model for a refund.

You can always choose not to shop at Walmart.

Which is best for our economy.

Wal-mart is absolutely not allowed to check you receipts!

They did it to me only once. I got singled out of a crowd for a reciept check, did so nicely, and afterwards, pointed to some old people and some "white-bread" couples and said "search them next if you're not singling people out." They didn't. I have long hair and was wearing a Maiden t-shirt at the time.

Oblivious to them is the fact that most crimes ranging from thefts to murders are committed by people others don't suspect are criminals. People think they know what a criminal looks like, yet every say on the news is a clean-cut guy who's wholesome-looking with a great family life in handcuffs for every crime imaginable, and in spite of that, people still have comceptions of what criminals look like and single people out. Every time a serial killer gets arrested, his friends and neighbors say "he was such a nice good neighbor."

[majormadmax]

This is just one of the many reasons I despise WalMart so much. For one, that "check" they do of your receipt is a joke. Honestly, they look at the receipt, glance at your bags, and then put a yellow stripe down the receipt with a highlighter. We usually have two carts full of groceries and it would take them over an hour to thoroughly check off each item on the receipt with the items in the bags.

Secondly and more honestly, what is that 90-year-old greeter or security guy in the golf cart going to do? I saw an episode where a teenaged kid set of the alarm and took off right by the greeter. Even people who set of the alarm and stop are usually waved off without being checked.

With a store the size of your average WalMart and the amount of business they do, it would be impossible to efficiently prevent theft. They are better off having undercover security to monitor customers throughout the store, as well as surveillance cameras; but even those have to be monitored to be effective and how much cost do they want to invest in that? If anyone believes that these checks do anything to deter theft, they are badly mistaken

I don't condone shoplifting as in the end it is you and I--the honest customers--that pay for the items other people steal. But I also don't like being treated as a suspect by the store. If they have a reason to check my bags, and I am talking a specific reason, then I have no problem with it; but these "random checks" are a joke, and even I have walked by someone being checked without slowing down. I have no reason to waste my time waiting for them to conduct some illegal check, as the article smuboy86 posted, and is just another great reason to just blow by them the next time they try it.

And as for those "security guards," I always have to smile when I see them as I am usually "better prepared" to handle any situation then they are. I would never rely on my well-being or protection, or more importantly the well-being or protection of my family, to some guy with a flashlight and a bunch of keys!

Cheers! M2

[Deep Forest]

Originally Posted by Spock's Beard

You won't believe the crap I've heard people bragging about on various message boards. Thieves are smarter than that.

Smart thieves take one toy, take it out of the package, substitute it for a similar but lesser-value toy, and return for refunds. So it's not unheard of to see a Star Wars or GI Joe figure with some other figure in the package.

Smart thieves buy broken video game systems, cameras, IPod's, HDTV's, etc. off of Ebay for nothing, buy the same model at the store, and then return the broken system in the box of the new model for a refund.


Which is best for our economy.



They did it to me only once. I got singled out of a crowd for a reciept check, did so nicely, and afterwards, pointed to some old people and some "white-bread" couples and said "search them next if you're not singling people out." They didn't. I have long hair and was wearing a Maiden t-shirt at the time.

Oblivious to them is the fact that most crimes ranging from thefts to murders are committed by people others don't suspect are criminals. People think they know what a criminal looks like, yet every say on the news is a clean-cut guy who's wholesome-looking with a great family life in handcuffs for every crime imaginable, and in spite of that, people still have comceptions of what criminals look like and single people out. Every time a serial killer gets arrested, his friends and neighbors say "he was such a nice good neighbor."

What I referenced were the "dumb" ones. A few days ago I went to a WalMart to buy a pair of sneakers. After going through all the trouble to get them down from the top shelf--BAM !!!--I opened the box and there were someone's old pair of shoes....the clerk said "they'll probably catch them at the exit". What a laugh ! You know that's what their looking for when you leave the store.......