WALMART customers are tired of having to hand over their receipts when they leave the store – even if they don’t use the self-checkout lanes.
Rampant shoplifting has forced major retailers like Walmart, Target and CVS to come up with creative ways to protect their merchandise and customers.
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These new anti-theft measures include increased security cameras and locking products on shelves. Customers have repeatedly complained about one of these measures only taking effect after paying for the items.
Many well-known stores now require their customers to hand over their receipts to employees, who then check whether all items have been scanned properly.
This typically occurs when a customer uses a self-service checkout machine instead of a cash register operated by another store employee.
However, a Walmart customer revealed on Facebook that this is not always the case.
“I will leave Walmart one good and one bad review,” the shopper said, describing that she had been to her local Walmart store to purchase diapers and other items that had completely filled her shopping cart.
So she went to a manned cash register to check out all her items.
“I leave the cash register and am asked to show my receipt,” she said.
“I know I could politely decline, but I won’t.
“But it’s starting to annoy me. I’m alone. Leave me alone.”
She continued, “Next time I should just wave a receipt when I go out or stick it on my forehead. Lol.”
It wasn’t immediately clear which Walmart the customer had shopped at, but she appears to be based in Toledo, Ohio.
Receipt checking has long been criticized by shoppers, with many customers saying they often feel excluded or treated like criminals when trying to leave the store after paying.
Walmart defended the anti-theft measure, telling ABC affiliate KXTV that the company’s intention was to “check every receipt.”
There has long been debate about whether stores like Walmart can legally force their customers to show them receipts upon request.
In general, experts agree that this may depend on where you shop.
Legality of receipt verification and retention
In order to curb crime in the retail sector, stores are increasingly checking receipts when customers leave the store.
Stores are legally permitted to ask customers to produce their receipts. Members-only stores have the right to do so provided customers have agreed to the relevant terms and conditions.
Numerous legal experts have weighed in and reached similar conclusions, albeit with the caveat that each state has its own specific laws.
Generally, stores are subject to storekeeper privilege, which allows them to detain a person until authorities arrive if there is reasonable suspicion that a crime, such as theft, has been committed.
A store’s refusal to provide a receipt is not in itself a reason for a store to detain a customer; there must be other reasons to suspect the buyer of criminal activity.
Since receipt verification has only been implemented recently, there are no concrete laws yet regarding the legality of this practice, as it takes some time for legislation to catch up with technology.
Setliff Law, PC claims that “there is no clear case law specifically regarding refusal to produce proof of purchase.”
Businesses that abuse their storekeeper privilege may face charges of false imprisonment.
“The main law that applies to these types of wrongful imprisonment cases is called ‘deprivation of liberty,'” explained Hudson Valley local attorney Alex Mainetti.
“Of course, you are not literally being detained, but you are being held by a person who has no legal authority to detain you and/or is wrongfully detaining a customer.”
It is likely that, given the ongoing disputes in stores over receipt checking, there will be more court cases in which the legality of receipt checking will be more clearly defined and delineated.
Stores like Sam’s Club and Costco that use a membership-based model typically have receipt verification policies written into their membership agreements.
Because shoppers must agree to these policies when checking in, stores may require receipts to be checked at the door.
However, in other stores like Walmart or Target, customers are not legally required to hand over the slip.
Generally, these stores are protected by the storekeeper’s privilege, which allows them to detain a customer until the police arrive if there is reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed.
A lawyer’s 5 best tips for checking receipts
Camron Dowlatshahi, a Los Angeles-based attorney, spoke to The US Sun about checking receipts and the rights and options customers have when asked to show their receipt.
- There has been a lot of debate about whether it is legal for a retailer to ask for the receipt, but if they are in the store, it is perfectly legal. “There seems to be nothing illegal about it. They are still on the premises and their reason for doing it is to prevent theft,” confirms Dowlatshahi.
- But if they chase you out of the store, that changes things, Dowlatshahi said. “Location is important,” he explained. “If you’re standing outside the store, in the parking lot, and they come and start accusing you of theft and say you have to show your receipt, I think that’s a little bit of a different situation because now you can leave.”
- Customers are allowed to refuse to check receipts, but if you do and the store suspects you of theft, it can cause problems. “You can say no, but you might be causing unnecessary trouble because the police will have to come to your home and investigate,” Dowlatshahi said.
- If you are prevented from leaving a store because you refused to accept a receipt, you could take legal action against it – but the store must have detained you for a long time. “If let’s say it lasts for hours, then that is certainly false imprisonment and they had no incentive to do it,” Dowlatshahi explained. “If a customer has been emotionally traumatized by the false imprisonment, I would definitely advise them to sue.”
- “I would say show your receipt,” he concluded. “It’s very simple. If you didn’t steal anything, it’s relatively easy,” the lawyer advised.
(According to Camron Dowlatshahi, founding partner at Mills Sadat Dowlat LLP)
While refusing to provide proof is not sufficient reason to detain a buyer, it can create suspicion.
Legal experts therefore still recommend showing your receipt when leaving the store.
“I would say show your receipt,” Camron Dowlatshahi, a Los Angeles lawyer, told The US Sun.
“It’s very simple. If you haven’t stolen anything, it’s relatively easy.”
