Walmart Door Gestapo

Does your Walmart have people at the exits wanting to check your receipt and cart/bags?

Do you allow them to intrude on your ability to exit the building unimpeded?

I would like to hear the excuses that they have given you for why they are stopping you. Please drop a comment to share your stories.

This is not a valid case of loss prevention. Having a person standing there to check receipts does not work. There are three components that need to be met for a shoplifting case:

  1. You must witness merchandise being concealed
  2. You must keep them in line of sight
  3. they must set foot outside of the building without paying

What are the chances that the well intended person at the door has witnessed any of the three from their vantage point?

I have watched the loss prevention guy in my local Walmart. We was creepy enough that I went to another staffer to verify his role. They wanted to deny knowing him until I suggested that they may have a problem within the store and that they may have a problem with a person in the store. Yes, I have worked security enough to know odd behavior well enough to notice it.

Before you play the Costco card, keep in mind that they are a club store. You pay for membership and part of the agreement is to be checked on the way out.

Yes, Frye’s Electronics has the same receipt check and I handle it the same way as Walmart. Here is what I suggest…

Simply respond in a polite manner, “No thank you, but have a nice day.”

Remember that your transaction was completed at the register. They no longer have a right to detain you. One exception that I make, is when goods are not contained in bags. If it is a gallon of milk, I don’t stop, at it is customary for that to not be bagged.

Obviously how you choose to respond to their requests is up to you, but just know that they will not stop this behavior as long as we let them get away with it.

Excuses given for stopping us:

  • It helps with inventory (as if the registers do not do this)
  • You can’t return anything without the receipt being checked