Self Service Checkouts - a good thing or not?

[Thin White Duke]

I know they've been around for a long time now, but my local Sainsbury's has recently introduced the larger trolley self service checkouts.

For the past couple of weeks I've asked them to open a regular till for me as I didn't fancy scanning a trolley full myself.

This evening, again with no regular till open I decided to give it a go. It's obviously just like the smaller self service but you have more stuff to scan which did feel like a chore.

I'd assume that during peak times they'll have someone on a regular till and I know that someone like my Grandad would never be able to use self service.

My mother is also very much against them (has never used one yet, anywhere) and said she'll kick up a fuss if she goes in and there are no regular tills open.

I also saw a couple apparently using the scan and go app as they shopped. Not sure I'm ready for that just yet!

[Dingu]

Yes, definitely a good thing. It does however need the supermarket to open a till on request for those who prefer that. Tescos have that as their policy for example afaik.

[Thin White Duke]

Dingu said:

Yes, definitely a good thing. It does however need the supermarket to open a till on request for those who prefer that. Tescos have that as their policy for example afaik.

I did read that about Tesco when they had some customers kicking up a fuss in a particular store with no one manning the regular tills.

Do you/would you use the Trolley self service if you are doing a traditional big weekly shop?

[jameswills]

It’s the ones that seemingly want to take your photo while you shop that I don’t like. Why?

[robbieduncan]

Self service is so last decade! Self scan is where it's at. Definitely for doing big shops. Scan and pack as you go, pay and leave.

[NuckyThompson]

Supermarkets put up their prices, make massive Covid profits, fleece the farmers for milk and meat and then get the shoppers to work for them for free.

What’s not to like?

[Defcon5]

robbieduncan said:

Self service is so last decade! Self scan is where it's at. Definitely for doing big shops. Scan and pack as you go, pay and leave.

100%

Why anyone doesn’t use this is beyond me

[Jasandjules]

Utterly awful.

[Jamescrs]

I use self scan wherever possible now. I was dubious at first but its great, takes very little extra time to scan as I go then by the time I'm at the check.out machine it's all bagged, never have to queue to check out as always a machine freeand off I go.

I'll never use a normal supermarket till again through choice.

[Evanivitch]

Listening to Radio 4 this evening. We have a massive labour shortage. I know some people that always considered using a checkout because it "preserved jobs". Well right now, that's not a consideration.

Defcon5 said:

robbieduncan said:

Self service is so last decade! Self scan is where it's at. Definitely for doing big shops. Scan and pack as you go, pay and leave.

100%

Why anyone doesn’t use this is beyond me

This. Scan as you shop. Go to checkout, pay, show some ID, maybe they'll check one or two items, away you go. No need to unpack.

[Giulia Jon]

Recently I saw a man dump his basket of groceries at the also unmanned customer services and storm out .
I assume this was a protest at the lack of normal tills .

More fool you dinosaur , go home foodless .

I much prefer the self scan ,been using them since they were installed .

[jameswills]

Do you have to sign up to anything to use it and can you pay by cash?

[WelshRich]

jameswills said:

It’s the ones that seemingly want to take your photo while you shop that I don’t like. Why?

I’ve been at a few where they seem to be able to approve restricted age things like paracetamol “remotely” - It maybe helps that it’s a long time since anyone thought I looked under 18

[21TonyK]

I favour Lidl over Aldi because of self can purely for speed. Irritating having to sometimes wait for alcohol approval but local co-op has that nailed with cameras on the tills so maybe Aldi could learn from this.

Waiting behind doris while she spends ten minutes unloading her trolley and discussing the grand kids is not something I want as part of my shopping experience.

I shop due to necessity not for the social experience... add in whole families shopping together, fk off and get out of my aisle.

[sherman]

Jamescrs said:

I use self scan wherever possible now. I was dubious at first but its great, takes very little extra time to scan as I go then by the time I'm at the check.out machine it's all bagged, never have to queue to check out as always a machine freeand off I go.

I'll never use a normal supermarket till again through choice.

Its fine until you get randomly checked to make sure you only have what you scanned at the till and have to unbag everything so it can be rescanned through a regular checkout. Defeating the whole point of scan and go.

[Turtle Shed]

Self scanning is so last year.

£65 for an entire year of deliveries from Asda. Order on the app, bloke turns up with stuff.

I have no idea why anyone would do it any other way unless they like the social aspect of shopping or browsing the store.

[Brainpox]

Self scan/scan as your shop is great. There's no need to have someone else scan your shopping. The only thing that needs adjusting at our local Tesco is the number of pings for checks when they have fewer staff on the self scan tills. There are now a total of 22 self scan/scan as you shop checkouts and sometimes only two people manning them. Of those, one will be constantly doing service checks, meaning only one other to take responsibility for checking ID, sorting items that won't scan, security tags, vouchers, etc for 21 checkouts. Either reduce the pings or make sure there are more staff on more often. With that kind of efficiency they could lose loads in stolen products and not even notice.

[sherman]

Turtle Shed said:

Self scanning is so last year.

£65 for an entire year of deliveries from Asda. Order on the app, bloke turns up with stuff.

I have no idea why anyone would do it any other way unless they like the social aspect of shopping or browsing the store.

Because of substitions abd also the van just not turning up.

[okgo]

robbieduncan said:

Self service is so last decade! Self scan is where it's at. Definitely for doing big shops. Scan and pack as you go, pay and leave.

Just have it delivered to your house. Why on earth would you waste your life walking round a shop?!

[jameswills]

Agreed, it was ok during lockdown, but I like fresh stuff and it’s extremely annoying when the lowest common denominator employee decides there’s no semi skimmed milk and would you like to swap it for a tomato. Yet if you went to the store you couldn’t move for milk.