Shopping carts often litter store parking lots, and those who avoid the shopping cart area seem to think they have good reasons for doing so.

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What annoys me the most is people who refuse to put their shopping carts back in the supermarket after shopping. I can’t count the number of times I’ve had to push a shopping cart out of a parking space to park my car. Plus, these carts tend to fly away in strong winds and cause damage to surrounding vehicles. It only takes a few seconds to be a good person and put your shopping cart back. So why do some people find it so difficult?

While researching this topic, I came across an article that sheds light on why people don’t want to drive an extra mile (or rather, a meter) after loading their vehicle. According to Scientific American, there are actually a whole host of different reasons why people don’t return their shopping cart. I admit, some of them sound pretty plausible, but others are just plain laziness. You can see them below.

• The socket is too far from where you park your car.
• The person has a child that he or she does not want to leave unattended.
• The weather is bad.
• The person has a disability.
• People think that collecting the shopping carts is someone else’s job.
• They leave the shopping carts behind so that someone else can easily pick them up and use them.

Perhaps the worst reason for not returning your shopping cart after using it comes from Reddit. In one particular thread, one person wrote a long story about how they intentionally don’t return their shopping cart. The main reason for their behavior is definitely something I had never considered. See below for more information.

Many people believe that it is their duty as a shopper to return the shopping cart they just used in the supermarket to the cart spot, and consider it rude to leave the cart in the middle of the parking lot next to their car. However, I believe that not only is it more convenient for the shopper to leave the shopping cart they just used next to their car, it also creates demand for “courtesy clerk” jobs in the supermarket.

I’ll be the first to admit that the above reasoning is absolutely absurd. That’s like saying, “I commit crimes to give jobs to cops and prosecutors.” That doesn’t make any sense. If you’re able to, I highly recommend returning your shopping cart. It’s definitely more convenient for those around you and shows people that you’re not a total shopping cart trash monster.