A bit miffed with Te$co

[KneesUp]

I love 'em. Quick, easy and the less human interaction the better in my book. I don't know why people complain they don't work, I never have any issues.

Anyway, we do the bulk of our shopping online and get it delivered.

Because in their experience they don't I'd guess? I'm not a Luddite - I have worked in IT (software and hardware) but the machines throw up errors regularly - and because there is only one member of staff per 8 machines at my nearest supermarket, you end up having to wait for the assistant to get to you because your packet of crisps it too light to register, then again because they haven't updated the database to account for the 50% extra free in your bag of coffee, and then again because you've bought deadly Calpol that needs approval, and then again because you've also bought a bottle of wine. And then again because it won't take one of your notes.

 

[Beebo]

Self serve tills have one definite advantage, it isn't rude to use them wearing earphones.

Plus I can pay with all my small change without getting a funny look.
Although the down side to that is when the £3.40 in change comes back in denominations of 5p or less.

 

[the_mikey]

Don't include me in that. If I'm buying just a handful of items I always use the self service tills. The ones in my local Little Waitrose always work perfectly, although the conversation can be a little one-sided. Quicker too as I'm quite capable of packing my own bag.

I'm happy with the self service tills also, no more queuing while staring at the chocolates and batteries.

 

[tyred]

I find the self-service tills in the local Tescos work very well for me.

In contrast, I tried to use ones in Ayr while one holidays a few years ago (Morrisons IIRC) and it was enough to make a grown man cry. I never seen such user-unfriendly devices.

 

[KneesUp]

Maybe the ones in my Tesco are old ones. Sometimes it can take about 30 seconds between the beep and the item description appearing.

 

[Andrew_P]

Scan as you shop is brilliant and quick too, plus I tend to use more of the vouchers

The loss rate must be sky high though. Even when you have a random check 99.9% of the time it is only a 5 item check and the person checking normally just skims the top items. Also it appears that at least if they are a first time offender nothing is done other than putting through the items "missed" off. I have seen one shopper with huge beef and pork joints missed off the scan. Seems strange that the self service has a weight check but the scan as you shop doesn't.

 

[Roadrider48]

but that's not why they have them.

To keep the prices a bit lower.

 

[winjim]

Have you ever read EM Forster's The Machine Stopped?

I started to skim read the plot synopsis on wikipedia but I got bored and fidgity.

 

[Booyaa]

I like the self service tills. Makes the shopping experience much easier and quicker.

It was Asda that promised to open a new checkout if more than one person is in a queue. I used to have a lot of fun with that by changing queue after a new one was opened. Quite sad but it made me laugh.

The self serve tills in Morrisons (at least in Hamilton) were the worst machines I have used, never worked and were always throwing up errors. the good thing was though it was always a very attractive redhead that worked the self service tills so I always managed to give my top chat out to her.

 

[KneesUp]

If they could introduce some sort of customer recognition, so that the staff don't have to vouch for my age when buying alcohol, that would be good. Fingerprint and or iris recognition would do.

Why not just give the supermarkets your DNA? I'm sure they will look after it.

 

[KneesUp]

Scan as you shop is brilliant and quick too, plus I tend to use more of the vouchers

The loss rate must be sky high though. Even when you have a random check 99.9% of the time it is only a 5 item check and the person checking normally just skims the top items. Also it appears that at least if they are a first time offender nothing is done other than putting through the items "missed" off. I have seen one shopper with huge beef and pork joints missed off the scan. Seems strange that the self service has a weight check but the scan as you shop doesn't.

Safeway used to do Scan and Shop (can't remember the name they gave it) in Sutton in the late 990's - I believe it was a trial. I did like that; it meant I was more often able to get some shopping and catch the earlier train, although it was a sod if you got pulled for a random re-scan because you missed the train anyway. In the end I think I went about 6 months without being checked. That was a much better system because there was no queue at the end and even if you did get pulled for a re-scan they had a dedicated till just for that - they used to scan the whole lot again on a normal till - sounds like Tesco don't do that? I was told that if your re-scan total was different to your scanned total you would get pulled more often until you started getting it right.

 

[Andrew_P]

Safeway used to do Scan and Shop (can't remember the name they gave it) in Sutton in the late 990's - I believe it was a trial. I did like that; it meant I was more often able to get some shopping and catch the earlier train, although it was a sod if you got pulled for a random re-scan because you missed the train anyway. In the end I think I went about 6 months without being checked. That was a much better system because there was no queue at the end and even if you did get pulled for a re-scan they had a dedicated till just for that - they used to scan the whole lot again on a normal till - sounds like Tesco don't do that? I was told that if your re-scan total was different to your scanned total you would get pulled more often until you started getting it right.

They are random checks generated by the scan unit and give a number of items to check I only have ever had 5 items check and rarely do they delve around in the bags, if something in the five hadn't been scanned they check everything

 

[MarkF]

The ones at Tesco have the note return aperture in an odd place, well thought out, after twice leaving a tenner in Tesco, I no longer use Tesco.

Morrisons tonight, I scanned a bottle of Limeade and put in the bag, the machine said "please put the item in the bag", where did it think I'd put it, up my bottom? Bollox to Morrisons too.

These machines "fail" so often the staff don't acknowledge you, they press a few buttons without ever recognising your presence, it's like the positions have been reversed and they are getting their own back..

 

[morrisman]

Big fan of self scan, can be in and out of the store in the time it takes to queue and pay at a full service till.

 

[swee'pea99]

Anyhow, the superviser came over and we explained all this to her. She took back the tenner in question and told ME to get back to THEM the following day.

Does sound a staggeringly inept piece of 'supervising'. 'How to alienate a Really Good Customer, Lesson 1'.

Ok, here's my Tesco screw-up story...

Got some big cans of paint that were on special 'click & collect' sort of a deal. Click and wait ten minutes while they rootle around in the storeroom and collect, more like. Then I get this text 'we'd love your feedback'. Normally I ignore these, like anyone else. But this time, I thought why not. (This is not the first 'click & collect' that has involved a ten minute wait. 'Don't you have some kind of a system?' I asked. 'No,' they said, 'it all goes in the back room, then someone has to find whatever it is.')

So I go to feedback.

'How was your visit? How was the store? How clean was it?' etc etc. 'Uh oh,' thinks I, this isn't feedback on my experience, this is just one of their standard market research deals. Life is too short.' So I give up, and end them an email instead, saying I don't particularly enjoy being asked for feedback, then subjected to a standardised grilling, and why don't they have some system, rather than turn up and wait ten minutes, oh, and both cans of paint were leaking, by the way.

Standard email comes back: 'Thanks for your message, we really appreciate getting your feedback, and we'll respond to your message properly in a day or two.'

Nothing.

A few days later, I twig that I've heard nothing. I'm a tad miffed. I email them. 'Just how much do you appreciate my feedback? Any chance of a response?'

Nothing.

That was a week ago. Another good (arguably) customer alienated. And hey, that's two negative messages about Tesco (a beleagured company - wonder why) on a widely read forum.

Every little helps, eh?