A Criminal Defense Attorney Explains Why Everyone Should Avoid Self-Checkout Lanes
(MAGANews.Org) – Self-checkout lanes are intended to save companies time and money and have quickly become an alternative to employee-operated self-checkout lanes.
The intent of self-checkout kiosks is for customers to scan their products, pay using cash or credit, insert any product coupons or discount codes, and be on their way.
How It Works
The self-checkout operating systems use a barcode technology with a touchscreen interface. Many also come with pre-recorded voice commands asking you what payment method you’ll use or how many bags you need.
Supermarkets and retailers want customers to have complete control of the purchasing process, ultimately making for a better shopping experience. But some say having that technology and automation at your fingertips can have potential risks.
The reason? Shoplifting
Criminal defense attorney Carrie Jernigan explains why self-checkout lanes should be avoided at all costs. According to a video she posted, she explains there are three types of people getting charged with shoplifting at self-checkout kiosks:
Professional Criminals
These individuals steal by swapping barcodes on items or avoid scanning items altogether. Some also stack things together like greeting cards and only scan one.
One shoplifter got caught stealing money by asking for cashback and saying the self-checkout kiosk never dispensed the cash.
Other examples of shoplifters trying to steal from self-checkout lanes are:
- Selecting incorrect items – when buying produce, they will choose a cheaper item on the screen before weighing it.
- Placing items in reusable shopping bags – before heading to the self-checkout lane, the shoplifter will place expensive items in their bags.
- Purposely “forgetting” to scan items – since no employees are around to monitor, the shoplifter pretends to scan items. These are usually large items placed at the bottom of shopping carts.
These types of people will try anything to cheat the self-checkout lanes.
Theft By Mistake
These are people who genuinely forgot to scan an item. Sometimes it’s an item left at the bottom of the cart or maybe an item hidden underneath a baby bag or a large purse.
Often, customers are in a hurry or have a lot of things on their minds and overlook an item.
Before you know it, you’re being stopped at the door by a store’s asset protection team member because of an item you honestly forgot to scan.
Jernigan explains that when self-checkout kiosks were first used, stores were more lenient when some forgot to scan an item. They were usually made to pay for the item or take it back.
But now, that’s all changed. Jernigan explains that because shoplifters have become so good at stealing from self-checkout lanes, stores don’t want to deal with whether the theft was accidental.
The stores send a message saying, “Let’s let the judge sort it out.”
This experience can turn a simple shopping mistake into a courtroom nightmare.
The TRULY Innocent
These people are not criminally charged for shoplifting for weeks or months after accidentally forgetting to scan an item.
When a store’s asset protection team conducts an audit or inventory check and comes up short, they will start watching video footage taken at the store’s self-checkout lane.
The audit sometimes ends badly for a shopper who accidentally forgot to scan an item resulting from an audit of a missing product.
This is when things can get scary. In most cases, shoplifting is considered a misdemeanor that could still land someone in prison for up to a year.
If the items are higher in price, the charges could be elevated to a felony, making the prison sentence much longer.
What To Do If You MUST Use The Self-Checkout Lanes
Jernigan advises NOT to pay in cash because it will be harder to prove that you purchased the items.
A credit or debit card will make it much easier to prove your innocence.
Unfortunately, it will still come at the price of money, time, and effort. The damage to your reputation will already be done.
@carriejernigan1 Reply to @afamily20202 ♬ original sound – LAWYER CARRIE
Lesleigh Nurse said she was falsely accused of shoplifting by Walmart after using a self-checkout kiosk. If it can happen to her, it can happen to you.
Copyright 2022, MAGANews.org
