‘What do they hope to accomplish with this?’ cries frustrated Costco shopper comparing the receipt check line to TSA
ONE shopper has blasted Costco for its receipt-checking policy and even compared it to a TSA line.
Receipt checking has become a growingly common and controversial aspect of retail shopping in recent years.
AlamyA Costco customer has complained about the store’s receipt checks and compared it to TSA (stock image)[/caption]
GettyCostco has been known for its receipt-checking practice (stock image)[/caption]
While stores like Walmart have adopted these measures more recently, Costco has used this policy for years.
Shoppers must wait as they leave the store to have an employee check their receipts and items before they can exit.
A Costco customer (@JEllulz) shared their disdain for this measure in an X, formerly Twitter, post.
“Wild at Costco how they check your receipt and check every item in your cart on the way out,” they wrote.
“Like a little TSA line on your way out the door.”
This shopper also questioned the logic behind the process.
“What do they hope to accomplish with this?” they added.
“You think I somehow snuck a TV past the cashier but the rando at the exit is going to catch me?”
Many customers have believed this policy is an anti-theft measure but Costco has clarified its actual purpose.
“It is standard practice at all our warehouse locations to verify purchase receipts when customers exit our buildings,” the store wrote on its website.
“We do this to double-check that the items purchased have been correctly processed by our cashiers.
“It’s our most effective method of maintaining accuracy in inventory control, and it’s also a good way to ensure that our members have been charged properly for their purchases.”
Receipt checks are not the only practice that has made Costco stand out as a store.
As a membership-only warehouse store, shoppers must sign up and pay for a membership to buy from the retailer.
Legality of receipt checks and detention
In an effort to curtail retail crime, stores are increasingly turning to receipt checks as shoppers exit.
Legally, stores can ask to see a customer’s receipts, and membership-only stores have the right to demand such checks if shoppers agreed to terms and conditions that authorize it.
Many legal professionals have weighed in and come to similar conclusions, caveating that all states do have specific laws.
Generally speaking, stores have Shopkeeper’s Privilege laws that allow them to detain a person until authorities arrive when they have reasonable suspicion that a crime, like theft, has been committed.
Declining to provide a receipt is not a reason in itself for a store to detain a customer, they must have further reason to suspect a shopper of criminal activity.
Due to the recent nature of the receipt checks, there is little concrete law on the legality of the practice, as it takes time for law to catch up with technology.
Setliff Law, P.C. claims that “there is no definitive case law specifically relating to refusal to produce a receipt for purchases.”
For stores that improperly use their Shopkeeper’s Privilege, they could face claims of false imprisonment.
“The primary law that applies to these types of wrongful detention cases is called ‘False Imprisonment’,” explained Hudson Valley local attorney Alex Mainetti.
“Of course, you’re not literally imprisoned, but you’re detained by a person who has no lawful authority to detain you and/or wrongfully detains a customer.”
It is likely that as altercations in stores over receipt checks continue, more court cases will occur giving clearer definitions and boundaries to the legality of receipt checks.
Customers would typically flash their cards to a member of staff as they walked in, as proof, but a change to this approach has angered some people, The U.S. Sun has previously reported.
The retailer has been testing out a new system where shoppers must scan their membership cards instead.
One customer ranted on X, formerly Twitter, about this trial.
“I don’t know why Costco is so f**king strict with their membership now,” they said in the post.
“You do not get paid enough to act like this is Area 51,” they added.
The U.S. Sun has reached out to Costco for comment.
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