Check out Queues - pre stackers! Bad behaviour at supermarket queues. esp Aldi/Lidl.

I was in Lidls yesterday - I had 5 items to buy and did so quickly - joined the queue at the check out. There was a gentleman and his daughter in front of me - who appeared to have two small sets of messages divided by "next customer" on the counter.

The Check out lady - put through the first lot and he paid, and then she began with the next 6 or so items - to our surprise the gentlemen walked off these were not his.

At this stage there were 3 people behind me - we were all left looking at each other...

.....and then a lady appeared - she said "excuse me" to me - and she then started to put up some more items to the mystery items. This was bad. But it gets worse, she then went back to the end of the check out and proceeded to pull a full bag of shopping up to the front along the floor.

It appears she had come in - joined the queue - put items down on the conveyor belt - and went back to shopping.

I asked her was she "seriously" doing this? And she said Yes, you should have gone in front of me - if you had a problem. It was obvious she seen nothing wrong with this.

The Checkout lady explained that her items were put through in error - as she thought they were mine - and that no items should be put up on the belt - if you have not finished your shopping. She got louder and started to roar at me - saying "I DON'T care - I had no change for a trolley - what did you want me to do"....she just talked over everyone. The other two ladies beside me were gobsmacked - also highlighted the fact that what she had done was not the norm and that she can not hold her place like this - to which she said "she didn't care". I have to say I've never seen anything like it in my life. A very rude - mannerless woman. She then proceeded to move all our messages down the belt - and she loaded her full bag up - very slowly.

The lady at the checkout again reminder her that this would not be tolerated and that she will not be doing her shopping like this again.

She then began to pack slowly too - but thankfully the check out lady just scanned my few items through quickly and apologied for the inconveniece.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

Ignorant cow.

I can't stand when people try to hold a place in the queue by plonking their basket down and then going off to fetch half a dozen more items. Particularly when you often choose that particular queue because you think there's only a couple of people in front of you.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

I dont mind someone legging it back to grab something theyve forgotten, or skipping in to ask for change for a trolley while the till is open, but what the OP describes is just pure ignorance.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

I've no probs with someone running off to grab something they forgot - at least they mention it to you and say "do you mind"....

I hadn't even seen this lady - nor had the check out lady - so it was a pure mystery until she returned - with goods in hand - and to all our surprise the production of a bag of goods she'd put under the end of the check out - that none of us had seen. Or the rudeness of pushing our shopping back with the "next customer"! sign!!

I hope I never have to meet her again. Or anyone else has the unfortunate pleasure.

RUDE. Ignorant. etc etc.

Thank god for let off steam

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

I'm not going to lie to you...I would've been a little more "assertive" and told her where to go, while proceeding to move her shopping off the belt.

I love me a bit of aggro I do...

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

Kine said:

I'm not going to lie to you...I would've been a little more "assertive" and told her where to go, while proceeding to move her shopping off the belt.

I love me a bit of aggro I do...

Click to expand...

If you came down to Cork to Turner's Cross in the 70's, you'd have had a great time so, Kine. One of the chants was, "Come and have a go with the Celtic Agro!!!!"

I miss those times of simple pleasure!!!

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

I am definitely going to stop 'cruising' in Lidl.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

DrMoriarty said:

I am definitely going to stop 'cruising' in Lidl.

Click to expand...

Lol

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

I had the same sort of experience in Superquinn.
I had just walked up to the checkout when a woman pushed in right in front of me and started to put her shopping in the belt. I asked her what she was doing and she started to shout at me in a very abusive and offensive way saying I should have made a bigger deal of it when she pushed in if I had a problem with her but now it was too late.


So I made a bigger deal of it. At the checkout, on the way to the car park, while she was loading her shopping into her car and while she was driving away. Her mother and children were in the car so I let her mother know what sort of a daughter she had raised and how she should be ashamed of her and I told her children what sort of a mother they had and that I hoped they had a good father so that they didn’t turn out like her.

I don’t think she will cut in in-front of me again.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

City life eh?

Much easier experience shopping in the country. People letting you in in front of them all the time, nice leisurely pace, supermarket never that packed, getting a massage and free beer while you queue...

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

Thanks for the tips guys, this should be a key post. Quicker queues here I come.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

Purple said:

I had the same sort of experience in Superquinn.
I had just walked up to the checkout when a woman pushed in right in front of me and started to put her shopping in the belt. I asked her what she was doing and she started to shout at me in a very abusive and offensive way saying I should have made a bigger deal of it when she pushed in if I had a problem with her but now it was too late.


So I made a bigger deal of it. At the checkout, on the way to the car park, while she was loading her shopping into her car and while she was driving away. Her mother and children were in the car so I let her mother know what sort of a daughter she had raised and how she should be ashamed of her and I told her children what sort of a mother they had and that I hoped they had a good father so that they didn’t turn out like her.

I don’t think she will cut in in-front of me again.

Click to expand...

well done Purple!

Speaking as someone who also spent time working on a checkout in the run up to Christmas I can tell you, it's very annoying for the cashier when people plonk stuff on the belt then run off to finish the shopping, particularly when there is a queue behind glaring at you, I used to wish there was an easy way to just void off the sales! The worst thing is when parents would leave children to "mind" the shopping, so the child would have to put up with the glares too.

My other pet hate is when people don't wait for you to finish unloading your own trolley contents onto the belt and start loading their own stuff on. I used to end up piling everything on top of what was already there but now do take a stand and push their stuff back and say " excuse me I haven't finished"

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

I can assure you I was very assertive. One thing I do is speak my mind!
I let her know exactly what I thought, as did the checkout lady and the others standing in the Q behind me. I was the one that pulled her up IMMEDIATELY when she returned.

All the time keeping my cool, and letting her look worse and worse as the other checkpoints looked on at her. This did not bother her - she did not give care, one jot.

It wasn't like we could take her items off the belt (they had already started to be put through). No point delaying ourselves any further. She was doing a good job of that already. She continued to rant and rave the whole time. While we all discussed how rude she was.

I don't think its up to the "customer" to ensure that fair queuing system is in place. Im not sure what can be done to avoid this. This has never happened to me before - so I would expect that this doesn't happen too often!... THANK GOD!

Kine said:

I'm not going to lie to you...I would've been a little more "assertive" and told her where to go, while proceeding to move her shopping off the belt.

I love me a bit of aggro I do...

Click to expand...

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

sulo said:

I don't think its up to the "customer" to ensure that fair queuing system is in place. Im not sure what can be done to avoid this. This has never happened to me before - so I would expect that this doesn't happen too often!... THANK GOD!

Click to expand...

I remember at Superquinn before Christmas, usual thing the place was jammed, but the had staff at the isle directing the queues. They where very direct in pulling up people who tried to skip and sent them to the back.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

I used to work in a well known supermarket and the junior staff would sort out any queueing issues. If the person became aggressive or the situation escalated a supervisor was called in.

I always hated that the supervisor usually took the path of least resistance and would in fact open a closed checkout and run the troublemakers items through herself just to get them out of the shop asap. But it meant that the troublemaker was getting special treatment and in fact being rewarded for being a troublemaker!!

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

Thats no use Truthseeker!... as you say getting special treatment - may encourage them to continue that behaviour!
Oh well.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

What I can't understand is why don't Lidl have a quick checkout i.e. 10 items or fewer, like most other supermarkets. I've seen queues in Lidl stretch half-way down the shopping isle at busy times.

Also why don't they offer baskets? If I only want a few items, I'm not going to drive around one of their massive trolleys. Normally end up just picking up an empty box in the store for my few items, but then find I have to queue behind the trolley fulls.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

Rois said:

What I can't understand is why don't Lidl have a quick checkout i.e. 10 items or fewer, like most other supermarkets. I've seen queues in Lidl stretch half-way down the shopping isle at busy times. Also why don't they offer baskets? If I only want a few items, I'm not going to drive around one of their massive trolleys. Normally end up just picking up an empty box in the store for my few items, but then find I have to queue behind the trolley fulls.

Click to expand...

I agree, I rarely go to Aldi because of this. It's the only place I see 2 packed tight trollies going through as one. You never see that in Tesco/Dunnes.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

Rois said:

Also why don't they offer baskets? If I only want a few items, I'm not going to drive around one of their massive trolleys. Normally end up just picking up an empty box in the store for my few items, but then find I have to queue behind the trolley fulls.

Click to expand...

I used to do the empty box thing too but lately Ive noticed people bringing their own shopping bags and just using those to carry the stuff around until they get to the checkout so Ive started bringing a shopping bag with me to do that too.

Re: Check out Queues - pre stackers!!

Superquinn in Blanchardstown is atrocious for queues - it's a mess everytime I go in there - I don't know why regular shoppers there put up with it given the price of the goods. If I was paying that much all the time I'd want a 5 star queueing experience.