Now, we just tolerate bad behavior. Gee, we're such an advanced society--no wonder we're in such an economic mess.

DO. NOT. SHOP. AT. BEST. BUY. EVER.

Man, it's one thing that there's a lot of sheep out there buying from brass buy, but what amazes me is how many consumerist regulars are always popping in here complaining about how they were mistreated there.

I'm not doing blame the consumer here, I'm just saying it reminds me of a saying: The definition of madness is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result.

It defies logic.

In order for the store to detain you against your will they must have a reasonable belief that you store, and be able to articulate the actions that led them to detain you.

For example: "I think this guy stole something, he looks like a thief and he wouldn't let us check his receipt even after we asked 3 times!"

this wouldn't generally be grounds for detainment, and the merchant statute doesn't usually protect businesses from lawsuits based on such careless Loss Prevention. You have to have a solid reason, beyond a reasonable doubt in your own mind, to detain someone for a BRIEF investigation.

With the frequency of honest people refusing to subject themselves to being treated like criminals and walking out without showing a receipt, it would be hard to justify detaining each one. People should not be criminalized for acting lawfully, just because some jerk in a yellow shirt thinks he's above the law.

I suppose that's how we're being conditioned these days, sacrifice your rights and self respect for "security reasons".

I would only like to add that if the same had happened to me, and it has, I would immediate turn around and offer to show them my receipt at the returns counter. As a customer, I'm not obligated to stop being an asshole, but as an employee, and thereby a representative of your employer, YOU have the obligation of protecting your employers image. Now the security goon looks like the asshole, moreso than the hurried customer.

If I'm in one of these stores, the chances are pretty good that I'm running errands and anxious to get on to the next store. That's just me. I've just waited in line at the checkout . . . I'm certainly not going to wait in line at the door, too. No way. No how. Especially so that some employee can confirm that I'm not a criminal.

My response: "Not today. Thanks."
.

Well, exactly. If they don't have black-letter policies that say they will do something, and they SHOULD do it anyway, other means of convincing them to do it are necessary. Thus the email to them, the post on consumerist and the 400-some comments.

My previous post is directed at those saying "Get over it" and let them check.

If they don't mind having their receipts checked, I say: Go for it.

The difference is that I'm not asking anyone to change their behavior or telling them that their reaction is wrong. That needs to go both ways.

My money is that it doesn't crack the top 10.

Please. There are many worse things you could have been called than "asshole."
Now, if he called you a bitch in front of your son, you have a right to be angry.

~Y

@GoBobbyGo: But unless they have some sort of "rain check" policy good luck with that.

@GoBobbyGo: OK and I am not attacking you but simply calling out the B.S. I have seen

I understand checking for receipts when people walk toward the doors from the middle of the store, not checking the receipts of people that just came from the checkout lane. It's the register clerk's responsibility to make sure that the customer doesn't slip stuff past them, and then those tensiony nylon lune divider things can shoot them right out the door unmolested. If they go back in the store with their bag walk around before heading out, go ahead and check the bag.

As for being an asshole:
1. I'd love to be called an asshole at a store like that. I don't care if I was in a hury, that's something you can have a fun talk with the manager about.
2. We can discuss the merits of receipt checking, but the customer might really be an asshole.
3. I might be an asshole, too.

@darkryd: You're fighting a lost cause. The people who think that this guy deserves compensation are the same that think that every minor civil claim is a multimillion dollar lawsuit and the plaintiff can retire happily in the Caribbean.

Compensation? Seriously, there's no compensation needed beyond an apology. It was an ill-played choice by the guard, but deal with it and stop whining.

If you get called an asshole by someone, just suck it up, accept that the person who called you an asshole is one themself, and then make a note never to do business at that store again. Plain and simple.

@Stormslanding:

I think you defined yourself in the first sentence.

To intentionally send customers on a wild goose chase for an item is mean and wrong.
This is why BB & CC have such poor reputations.
If I was your manager, you would be fired.

@RabbitDinner: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

400!

400!!!

I just find it funny/odd/sad that of all the slights against personal rights and civil liberties visible in the US today, this is the battle that many people are choosing to fight. Illegal wiretapping? Who cares. Receipt checkers? OH NO, WE MUST FIGHT THIS INJUSTICE!!

Also point that out to the monkeys who claim that by accepting to show your receipt, you're giving up your personal freedoms and thus according to the great Franklin, do not deserve them.

Raise your hand if you thought that this thread would really hit 400 comments.

Our local Best Buy has NEVER checked a receipt that I have seen, although we do have a guy who gets paid to sit by the door and greet.

To those of you who say it is "their policy," I can only say that it must not be policy at every store, because no one I know has ever been stopped at our store for a receipt check. ALSO, it seems to me that if it is a policy, it should be clearly posted or stated somewhere, so that customers know what to expect. That's what Costco does. Its in their agreement when you sign up for a card.

Finally, I don't suppose it would bother me if they did ask occasionally, as long as it isn't every time. I can see them wanting to stop crime and "protect their merchandise" as much as any other store, but I can also see (based on what I've read here and on other sites in the past) that they CAN and DO lose customers over it. I would probably take offense if it was done EVERY time if it weren't a posted policy, because in the end it does waste time. Regardless of how valuable that time may be or not, I only have so much time to live before I die, and I'd like to spend as little as possible waiting in lines so I can be checked for shoplifting or whatever. I have never stolen an item in my life and don't intend to start anytime soon.

And our irritated customer has EVERY RIGHT to be bothered about being cursed at. Where I live cursing in the presence of a minor is a misdemeanor violation, and whether it occurs in the presence of a police officer or not, if a witness will sign the ticket, the offender will be issued a $108 fine. THINK TWICE ABOUT YOUR LANGUAGE. I see people griping that that language "isn't all that bad or harmful" or whatever, but parents have the right to choose what their children are exposed to, thats why we have a rating system for movies and TV, and thats why cursing in front of children is illegal in so many jurisdictions. Whether he gets a gift card or not (I don't care one way or the other) he MOST CERTAINLY deserves a PROPER apology from best buy and the employee. There are better ways to handle that situation, and the store needs to realize that. Good customer service is the ticket to repeat customers and a good customer base.

Just because YOU DON'T MIND doesn't mean EVERYONE else wants to stop (on their way from the register) and waste their time submitting to a completely meaningless song and dance that does nothing to prevent theft. The fat slobs at the door (and yes, they usually are fat slobs) should be watching their CCTVs rather than looking at receipts of customers coming directly from the store's one open register.

Get it? Not everyone thinks like you. Hard to believe isn't it?

Specially Best Buy - it would take 1 person standing where they do to make sure anyone leaving w/a bag comes from the checkout lines.

Awfully smug and cocky executive mgmt. are making these types of decisions...

FACT: Absent a membership agreement or another form of affirmative consent, the store has no legal authority to demand to see your receipt. They may ask, you may refuse.

FACT: Your refusal carries with it no risk of legal liability or legal consequences. It is, without question, not tantamount to probable cause. They cannot have you arrested for refusing to show your receipt.

FACT: Once you have paid for something, whether a stereo at Best Buy or an ice cream cone from a vendor on the street, it is yours. You do not have to prove this to anyone by any means, including showing them their receipt. If they are so convinced you have stolen something from them, they can detain you in most states until the police arrive. However, if it turns out that you didn't steal anything, you will have grounds for a civil lawsuit against them, and they may face criminal charges along the lines of kidnapping.

(This is not intended to be legal advice. If you have a specific legal question, you should consult your lawyer.)
. . .

I have my own opinions about the entire receipt checking routine, but I will save it for another comment as I don't want to confuse my opinion with clear facts.

[Cashier] - "Hello sir, are you ready to check out?"
[Customer] - "Yes, just this DirectTV receiver is all today."
[Cashier] - "What's your phone number?"
[Customer] - "No thanks, you don't need my phone number."
[Cashier] - "Would you like to join our Best Buy Rewards program for $10.00 ?
[Customer] - "No, thanks."
[Cashier] - "Are you sure? It's only..."
[Customer] - "No, just the receiver."

[Security Guard] - "May I see your receipt?"

Like all of his previous responses during the Worst Buy checkout process, Bobby was used to saying "No."

I applaud his rejection of useless questions.

I pick and chose my battles. And, honestly, I have some very serious battles to fight so showing my receipt at the door is nothing. If this is the biggest battle you have to fight, rock on.

And, guys, when you call someone a "minimum wage drone" or "high school drop out" or whatever the "in" insult is this week, you bring down your arguement. I personally don't listen to you because when you insult someone who has an honest job, you sound like you are trying to be some self-righteous snob and I picture you at the public library computer waiting for your welfare check.

As for this case. Yes, calling him an asshole was uncalled for. He got an apology and that is all that he should get. What does he want? A public lashing? For him to be able to look down his nose on the receipt checker while he is "forced" to apologize. Yeah whatever.

@MrDo: I have one even better - it's called living near New Hampshire. No tax, AND no waiting for shipping.

Is there a law that says you can't bring your own soda and snacks into a movie theater? I highly doubt it, yet many movie theaters enfore such a policy, as is well within their rights as you are being allowed to enter their private property.

Reed311 says, "If someone is leaving your store and you ask for their receipt and they say "no", that is reasonable cause to believe that they may have stolen your property."

And he couldn't be more wrong. As a former plain clothes loss prevention agent - and a current lawyer and law professor - trust me when I say that refusla to show your receipt (assuming you did lawfully purchase the merchandise in question) is *not* probable cause to detain someone. A store that detains someone solely on this basis is looking for a lawsuit, one it will lose. False imprisonment, battery, defamation, etc. Any decent company trains its agents in the law, and not showing your receipt doesn't even come close to probable cause to detain.

@ScubaSteveKzoo

Scuba, I agree with you. I am a regular at my local Best Buy. Sometimes I have been asked for my receipt, sometimes I have been waived off. I don't see the big deal with showing my receipt.

People can't have it both ways. Retail theft costs companies millions a year. So, instead of raising prices, they check receipts. It's similar to homeland security. People demand to be kept safe, and yet we refuse to spend an extra five minutes in a security line.

Don't get pissed at BB; get pissed at the assholes that steal from Best Buy and raise prices for us all.

As for the associate who called him a name, that was obviously wrong and he should be reprimanded.

Good times.

He ended up on the ground after trying to grab me. Wish I was still in that good of shape. :(

There's no question that you have been wronged. Do you mind answering what you think is fair compensation?

@waldo617211: I seemed to recall a study somewhere that over 90% of all inventory loss was committed by staff. If that is true, then they are pissing off a lot of people for very little payback.

I used to work as cashier at Best Buy. In my experience, most people don't care and show their receipt when asked. I didn't know there was any issue until I started reading The Consumerist.

"You're a thief unless you prove otherwise" is not exactly the store's reasoning. Receipt checking is intended to address at least three things:

* The "sweetheart" cashier, where someone walk through the line with a PS3 and the cashier only rings up the game (this is, of course, one type of employee theft)

* (more common) catch cashier or salesperson mistakes and hold the employee responsible. Example: you paid for a red washer and the stock guy pulled down a white one (see wellfleet, above). This one can work out in your favor, since how can you return something if it doesn't match your receipt?

* (not applicable to Best Buy) Verifying that the customer properly rung up everything using the self-checkout. Example: Guy Switches Price Tag On Walmart Plasma TV, Tries To Buy It For $4.88.

These all seem like fair reasons to me—and I don't know what alternative there is—so I don't hold it against any store for asking.

I would like to see some info from these stores that play " you're a thief unless you prove otherwise", to see how much theft it actually prevents. I seemed to recall a study somewhere that over 90% of all inventory loss was committed by staff. If that is true, then they are pissing off a lot of people for very little payback. One of these days, they're going to do this to the wrong person ( like a lawyer? ) & the payout will exceed many years of " public " shoplifting losses!

I can be an asshole. You can be an asshole. Anybody can be an asshole. I don't think I was actually being an asshole in this situation. I didn't raise my voice, I didn't get all huffy. I just said "no" to the first request, "no" to the second, "no" to the third, and "you may not" to the fourth. Probably I should have said "no, thank you" instead of just "no". But you can say "no" in a confrontational way and in a non-confrontational way, and this was the non-confrontational way.

Being called names is not usually fun, but I'm not claiming that it irreparably harmed me or anything. I never threatened to sue them. I just wrote up an email to tell them what happened and asked them to make it up to me.

All the people who are comparing receipt checkers to Nazi's, child molesters, etc, I'm not there with you. As I said in my original email, I think it's fine if they ask for it, as long as they're prepared to take "no" for an answer. This guy didn't like it - he followed me a few steps out the door toward the parking lot, and that was that. It wasn't like he was threatening me. And, no, I wasn't about to escalate any situation into anything worse, not with my baby right there. But if I've got a receipt somewhere in the bottom of my pocket, a bag in one arm, a baby in the other, and the baby's starting to get really agitated, it IS a hassle to produce the receipt. And I guarantee it will take more than 20 seconds. If I don't have to do it, I'm not going to.

To be honest, I agree that this isn't something to get upset over. I'm not upset, I just know that I've been wronged and I think it's reasonable to ask for something to make up for it.

As for both why I was shopping at BB at all, and why I wasted 2 hours of my day on this, it's an incremental thing. My DVR broke, and it's out of warranty, and DirecTV tells me I'll have a new one much faster, and $20 cheaper, if I go to the store and pick one up. The only store that sells them is BB. It's a ten minute drive. I call ahead of time to make sure they have it. No problem. Seems to me like the prudent thing to do here is to go to the store. It's pretty annoying that they don't actually have it. But there's a store that's 20 minutes further away that does. Well, I've wasted some time, but I'm already out of the house (which is the big thing about taking the baby out), and do I want to spend another half-hour or wait a couple more days to be able to watch tv? Off to the next store I go. The guys there were really nice, it wasn't their fault the first place told me they had the thing when they didn't, and they spent a bunch of time tracking a receiver down for me. Again, Bucktown's a little further away, but its not like I can have the time I've already wasted back. It's spend another hour or so or wait a couple days. So I check the baby, he seems fine, he's well-fed and happy, so I go to the other store.

The whole excursion took me 3 hours. If I had been told the truth originally, that the Bucktown store was the closest one to me with the receiver in stock, I would have gone straight there and back, and it would have taken an hour. That's why I said they wasted 2 hours of my time. Ben or whoever just edited that part out, because my email was pretty long.

I received a new Visa card in the mail as my old one was expiring. I stuck it in my wallet and forgot about it for a week or so.

I purchased something at Best Buy, and had just signed the credit card slip (this was when they were still paper) when the cashier turned my card over to check the signature. Of course, I had forgotten to sign the card when I stuck it in my wallet.

She says she can't approve the sale unless the signatures match. So I turn the card over, sign the back of it, and she then picks up the card and the credit slip AND COMPARES THE SIGNATURES!!! And I don't mean just a quick glance, she was really comparing them!

I had just signed both items in front of her, and she still compares the signatures!

Of course she approved the sale and I left just shaking my head....

If it's policy it should be clearly displayed, not in fine print, at the entrance and/or checkouts.

Costco and Sams Club may be a different matter as you joined a "club" and agreed to the rules.

Most of them are just whiners from the hippy age that are going into a midlife crisis and need to find a way to feel important through any means possible.

OMFG! People are disagreeing on the Internets! Who knew?!

Having read the threads accompanying the scores of other receipt check stories, I feel that the comments are truly carbon copies of each other. Some of them, the debate actually gets somewhere (e.g.-the CPA shoving the Wal-Mart receipt checker, the guy who got arrested for refusing to show his receipt, being detained, and threatened), but in those threads, there is an actual issue tangent to the concept of receipt-checking. The receipt checking debate has surpassed beating a dead horse, we have flogged it, we are absolutely desecrating the corpse

And if it's a 'choice' but you should only say yes it doesn't make much sense.

In The Know: Kim Jong-Il's Approval Rating Plummets to 120%

I'm actually surprised. I just got here, but I would have guessed rapid growth to somewhere around 150, and then a trickle over the night to end around 250.

Nope, pretty soon you'll have to ask who thought it'd get to 400.

The letter is good in general, but if Bobby wants compensation beyond that it helps to make a specific request. Otherwise, all Best Buy can do is stab in the dark at guessing what he means by saying "But I don't think that was enough. Best Buy repeatedly failed to do the minimum you'd expect a professional corporation to do...."

Does he want a gift card? Discount? Refund? Apology? Notice that the employee has been fired? Hug? Call from Brad Anderson? Week of free day care? Cubs game in Best Buy's luxury box (with open bar)?

Regardless, I'm sure Best Buy will do something. Whether or not it's "the minimum you'd expect a professional corporation to do" is a tossup.

(Maybe the request was edited out to make for more colorful discussion, in which case this comment is moot.)

There's no big deal with showing the receipt. The big deal would be if there's some kind of threat hanging over you if you don't. They shouldn't treat you badly if you just decide not to, or worse yet harm you.

Many stores have policies that apply after the sale is made (for example a return policy) so why could I not have a "receipts required policy" that applies after a sale?

And aside from that, my original question was: What is the BIG DEAL with showing your receipt to someone?

You know I think what's funny about all this is that there are people arguing the case for incidents of supposedly 'rogue' employees going to lengths that even the corporations themselves wouldn't support outright. Trying to find an 'airtight' way for corporations to check receipts.

@CapitalC: Verily you speak the truth. This of course takes us back to, "Do we believe the manager will do something about the employee's behavior?"

Ummm...maybe?

I think you're unnecessarily harsh,

Yes, you may be right - it is easy to become short tempered when you see the same uttelry wrong "facts" being presented over and over and over in thses discussions.

So, to Edge, my apologies. You're utterly and completely wrong, but I was out of line. Like I said - it's time for a drink and some dinner

I would fire on the spot any employee who used profanity toward a customer for ANY reason.

Call me old fashioned, but cussing is inexcusable.

Since the store is a private property and it sells merchandise, which it owns until a consumer buys it..

Yes... yes.. you're getting it, they own it until I buy it. Once I buy it I own it.

they have the right to make sure when you walk out the store, you did indeed buy the merchandise and are not stealing from them.

Aww, and it really did seem like you were getting it there for a second. But we have some lovely parting gifts for you on your way out. Absent a criminal investigation, i am under no obligation to justify ownership of my property to anyone.

Why can't it be 'I own it until proven otherwise', like the law actually says?

If you don't show your receipt, you think the stores should give you benefit of the doubt that you bought the product just because you feel you are an honest citizen?

Yes. Don't you? Ever heard the phrase "innocent until proven guilty"?
"probable cause"?
"Reasonable suspicion"?
"It's my property and I don't have to prove a goddamn thing to you"?

Unless they have clear, articulable evidence that I was shoplifting, they not only should, but MUST presume that I haven't stolen anything.

@Edge231:

Stores do have the right to stop you have make sure you did indeed purchase the product. It's their property until you can prove you paid for it.

Not only is this complete and utter horseshit, it's the stupidest thing I've read in this comment thread. Once they have accepted my tender the it becomes my property. Period. If you think there is some legal authority that supports the idiotic notion that "it's not yours until you show proof", by all means give us a link. Otherwise, do yourself a favor and STFU.

Absent a legitimate suspicion of criminal activity (based upon Probable Cause) I am under no obligation to provide proof of ownership of my property to anyone.

1. Employee should be put on a final warning for not only swearing at a customer, but also for following a customer out of the store and for creating an embarrassing situation in front of other customers;

2. GM should call and offer a personal apology, as well as special accommodations for the customer if the customer would give us a second chance;

3. Our LP checks receipts on any computer being wheeled out (as those are never rung up at the front lanes) and any television or large appliance (also not rung up on the front lanes). The reason is mainly due to prevent you leaving the store with the wrong item. It has happened many times that the wrong model computers/large TV/appliance was grabbed and the customer almost left with the wrong item, i.e. a red LG washer instead of a white, or a 650 series LCD instead of a 750.

I understand that you don't want to show your receipt but you must understand why we sometimes ask for it.

The issue at hand here is the fact the security guard called the guy an asshole. That's not acceptable at any store except for maybe an S&M store and you asked them to.

Best Buy owes this guy nothing because truth is a defense to slander. The shopper was being an asshole.

It's funny how they can watch you check out and purchase these items and then ask you for a receipt on the way out the door. I remember going to Sam's Club many years ago and had a cart stacked high with groceries that I paid for. I tried to leave and the door person demanded my receipt. I refused and walked out the door. They demanded I showed the receipt.

But here's two sides to the coin and the main reason it bothers me. If I had a large bag or cart with 20 plus items in bags and they want to see my receipt, I think for them to correctly do their job, they would have to go thru all the bags or cart and compare every item on the receipt. Make sure I'm not stealing anything. I don't have time for this BS.

The other side of the coin on this is I have seen people come in the store or get bags while in the store and walk around and put items in the bag go thru a busy checkout line and walk out the door.

Most of the time I object to having to show a receipt when asked. I'm a former police officer and if I had to come to BB or Wally World because someone didn't show a receipt. I would probably laugh. But then again, on the other side of the coin I would also ask to see the receipt to make sure you did make a legitimate purchase.

Oh pluzeee. Stores do have the right to stop you have make sure you did indeed purchase the product. It's their property until you can prove you paid for it.

Or maybe the stores can hire physics or people that see thru bags to make sure people have receipts, right?

A store is private property and they can set policies as they wish as long as they do not violate laws. You as a consumer have the right to not entertain stores who's polices you disagree with.

Since the store is a private property and it sells merchandise, which it owns until a consumer buys it..they have the right to make sure when you walk out the store, you did indeed buy the merchandise and are not stealing from them.

Now the OP was indeed as ass for not showing his receipt, but the checker should not have called him that. He should have instead called the police for possible theft of property. The police could have then dealt with the OP.

now I see my later comments are all messy as well - time for a drink and some dinner.

Peace all

If run a large store, why can't I put a POLICY in place that EVERY receipt must be checked upon exit from the store and if you don't want to show your receipt, we'll be happy to refund your purchase.

You can put any policy you want into place, but it doesn't mean there is any legally binding effect on me. Once I pay for that item, it becomes MY PROPERTY. You can have any policy you like, but you have no legal authority to stop me from leaving your store with my property.

Does company not have a RIGHT to implement a policy that ALL receipts must be checked?

A store has exactly two "rights" when it comes to their authority over me. They may refuse to do business with me, and they may ask me to leave their property. Absent clear and convincing evidence of a crime, THAT'S IT.

Since Option #1 is no longer viable once I've paid for the merchandise, they have exactly one choice left. If I refuse to show my receipt, they may ask me to leave. I have no problem with that.

@dragonfire81: Once I have paid for it it is MY property. What if I don't want it refunded?

Sorry, but the abundance of frivolous lawsuits and the people crying for everyone who looks at a child to be labeled a sex offender are 2 of my biggest legal pet peeves, and you managed to put both in one paragraph.

Even when I purchased a product from the customer service counter (Guitar Hero pre order, which is handled as an exchange), and was walking out of the store with product in hand, and hadn't come from the cashier area, I wasn't even prompted to show one.

My girlfriend, who hates when I'm mean to retail employees, was saying "Just show them your receipt if they ask." And, I was planning to, since I was walking off the floor with product under my arm. No-one even asked me what was going on.

I do not agree with these receipt checking policies, but conflating that to molestation is just asinine, and an insult to those that have been victims of a felonious injustice such as molestation.

I'm sorry, but I don't see how that is going to help. People will still refuse to check there and keep right on walking, leading on occasion to confrontations. Of course, the only way that this could be reasonably implemented is if you still required a receipt for returns or exchanges or whatever.

I generally just show the receipt, when they ask (which I've noticed is rarely if ever at our local Wal-Mart). It's a matter of picking your battles, not about being sheeple, or about feeling that my constitutional rights are being violated. Believe me, if I thought they were being violated, I would fight for them.

Cheers!

First, it is only designed to thwart two types of theft:

1) Softbagging - a coordinated effort between a cashier and an accomplice customer. The 'customer' buys several items, which the cashier purposefully rings up incorrectly. For instance, the customer buys two iPods and a snickers bar, and the cashier rings them up as 3 snickers bars. This only works if the receipt checker actually looks at the merchandise being purchased.

2) Shoplifting involving retail bags - Customer comes into the store with a bag, places several items within it, then walks out as if he has just purchased them.

When those small boxes end up in a jacket pocket, or a backpack, receipt checking does nothing.

If run a large store, why can't I put a POLICY in place that EVERY receipt must be checked upon exit from the store and if you don't want to show your receipt, we'll be happy to refund your purchase.

One commenter said there's no law that says you have to show your receipt. While true, there are plenty of non-law company POLICIES that govern business with any institution you spend money with.

Does company not have a RIGHT to implement a policy that ALL receipts must be checked?

Here's another thing I don't get. What information is on there that so important as to not be seen anyway? Most of the card number is obscured by asterisks and your name and address usually aren't on there. Typically they show the stores address and phone number, the date and time, items bought and their costs, sub total, after tax total and method of payment. This all information the store HAS ON FILE when you made the purchase.

In other words, information on the receipt is already known by at least one store employee, what's the big deal if another knows (like I said, there is nothing on there that would pose a threat regardless of who knows it).

The receipt checker isn't going to care what you bought, he just wants to make sure your bags and receipt match, that's his job.

Is it not better in most instances to just show the darn sheet of paper rather than start an argument with someone that's really not worth your trouble?

Man, he doesn't deserve compensation, but does this guy deserve to have a job? At least move him to stocking shit in the store. I've had friends fired from customer service jobs for less than shouting that a customer is an "asshole."

I think that that is why employees escalate these things. It's not that they are trying to lord their perceived authority by trying to force you to comply. They think that if you don't stop for a receipt check, you are likely guilty of shoplifting or something. Thus, in their mind they are justified in trying to stop you.

If stores instructed their people to not try and detain customers who refuse to show their receipt (because people have the right to refuse), these types of stories would vanish quickly.

Cheers!

"I would like to return this item"
"Okay, here's your money"
"Thanks"
"Can you give us your name and phone number"
"No"
BZZZZZZZT taser

I like my way better - I'll shop at any store I please. If they have a policy I don't like, I'll simply ignore it.

Have fun with that.

"What do you mean I can't return this item? I only bought it six months ago!"
"Sir, it's our policy to not accept returns after 30 days."
"Bull@#&*!!! I'm gonna ignore that policy and leave this here while I remove the amount of money I paid for it from your register."
BZZZZZZTTT!!! <--taser

In all the time that these "receipt checkers" have been used in stores like Best Buy, Costco, etc., have they actually done what they were designed to do, which I can only assume is cut down on theft?

Is receipt checking worth the bother, or is it just another corporate plan to combat theft that is only succeeding in annoying customers?

1) Buy item near exit where you don't get checked
2) Leave without getting checked
3) Hand off item to friend, stick bag in pocket
4) Return through different entrance, grab item, stick in bag
5) Gladly present receipt as you leave through the exit you just came in with, beeping is ignored (or your item is run through the debeeper)
6) Return item to another BB location

I personally wouldn't do that (it's theft), but I know someone who has. He built a computer, sans case, with "free parts".

More on topic, dude got an apology - what else does he need? He's not "entitled" to anything else

@cybercjh: Thank you...this is The Heart of the Matter.

Some people go out of their way to be jerks just to flex their right to

Some people seem to think that asserting your rights is "being a jerk".

. If you dont like BB's policies, then shop somewhere else.

I like my way better - I'll shop at any store I please. If they have a policy I don't like, I'll simply ignore it. If they have a problem with this, they are welcome to ask me to leave. It's worked remarkably well so far. As for Best Buy in particular, I haven't shopped there in years.

Taking 10 seconds to show the security guard your receipt (something that is COMMON practice at all BB stores) would have saved him the trouble of the guard lashing out like that.

The security guard following the law, the company policy, and/or having a bit of common courtesy would have also saved him that trouble. but you seem to just want to make it his fault.

Some people try to provoke this kind of thing and this customer sounds like one of them.

And you seem like the kind of person that thinks refusing to answer a cops questions is automatically suspicious and thus is grounds for search or arrest. And I used just as much information forming this opinion as you did forming yours about the OP. How about that.

Then again, it's a corporate giant, and the gears of change grind painfully slowly as a rule.

Therefore, I shop online.

No, it was just fate. I posted it when we were at 297. It was meant to be.

Now if BB told them they had something in stock and would hold it for him and didn't, yeah unnecessary waste of time. It just seems like he's whining about everything he can.

I usually agree with most of the commenter's here, and I know I'm in the minority but I don't see the big deal with showing your receipt. It's like 10 seconds, I don't feel like I'm giving up my rights, and I don't feel abused.

From reading the comments, it seems like many people decide to not show it in order to "stick it to the man," so that they can feel like they beat the system and maybe write to the consumerist about it. Overall though, I agree with girly, it's no big deal to not show your receipt, but it should be equally no big deal to decide not to show it. You aren't giving up your rights if you show it, but you shouldn't be treated disparagingly if you decide not to. If receipt checkers didn't make such a big deal out of it, then this would be a non issue.

It's times like these that I feel we could all use a brief refresher, so here's a public service announcement.

With guitars.

It is the responsibility of the policy maker to prove that that policy is conveyed and accepted. When you sign your warehouse club agreement, in that agreement is the conveyance of the receipt-check policy, and your signing the agreement demonstrates your acceptance of that policy. A store's return policy is usually posted somewhere in a conspicuous place, and usually in verbiage on the receipt. That is why you don't see stories about a consumer that is in violation of a return policy. Best Buy has no signage on the exterior of their building detailing any receipt-check policy; therefore any receipt-check policy is unenforceable.
I have no problem showing my receipt at a Best Buy if I am picking up a large-ticket item that is being delivered, or waiting at the security counter... My receipt shows proper ownership, and the loss prevention associate knows who to release my property. I also have no problem showing my receipt if a security alarm goes off... The loss prevention associate has reasonable cause to verify my purchase. I will not show my receipt or allow my person or personal property to be searched for any other reason.
I have served in the US Navy, and fought to protect and uphold the personal freedoms that so many people give away. People are giving away their personal liberties WHOLESALE. The receipt-check is just another example of people relinquishing their personal liberties. Anyone familiar with Occam's Razor, or has even a rudimentary understanding of the history of our own country, and the history of other countries that must understand that any freedom that is relinquished in the name of convenience, will undoubtedly give up that freedom and others to come. To paraphrase Benjamin Franklin: "He who sacrifices freedom for convience deserves neither." To quote Sir William Blackstone: "It is better to let ten guilty men go free than to incarcerate one innocent man"

Doesn't sound complicated to me.

My bad.

@Will_ND: How do you know Canino's even been on a plane before.

Either way, a store is not an airplane: Best Buy isn't going to be flying in the air. No one's going to die if the receipt checker misses something.
Just because people submit to a search in one situation doesn't make a search in a different situation appropriate.

@Will_ND: Pretty simple - at the airport the transaction has not been completed until I arrive at my destination and have all my luggage. At the store the transaction has been completed and everything I'm carrying is mine. Besides the obvious fact that the TSA is a government agency and there is no government agency checking receipts at Best Buy. Yet.

If it was as you were leaving the airport, I'm sure a lot of people would skip it because they wouldn't care about getting kicked out if they are leaving anyway.

Receipt checking done right, hey, what can you do--you just comply or say no.

Receipt checking done wrong, not allowing someone to say no by threat or physical intervention is wrong and should not be tolerated by any corporation that claims to value its customers

For all the "Receipt-Check Apologists" who have no problem with doing free loss-prevention work for the various retailers I ask, why do you allow a private citizen to search you on demand (keeping in mind that the courts have ruled that "corporations" are, for legal purposes, "citizens")?

If a stranger on the street asked to look at your personal belongings- which the products you've purchased become the moment the store accepts payment- would you allow them to? Can just anyone search you on demand?"

Completely different. Shouldn't even have to be spelled out. If you walk out of private property with something that may or may not be your property (and of which said private property owner owns several of), then a check to ensure that it is yours does not seem to be an unreasonable request. (Note my choice of words: request, not requirement.)

Receipt checking provides a deterrent to those who would otherwise walk out the front door with a item that a) is not stolen by employees and b) does not fit in their pockets.

Is it a good and cost-effective deterrent? That can be argued. Is it a deterrent? Undoubtably.

Y'know what we need? Something like this we can print and hand to the receipt checker as we walk out of the store.

So if you think people should just acquiesce and show their receipts because it's nice or whatever, do you think they should allow the minimum wage employee to dig through women's purses? How about your child's diaper bag and stroller? How about your little girl's My Little Pony backpack? After all, you could have stuck something in there, right? How much are you willing to allow?

If you're not willing to allow a full search, why are you willing to allow anything?

@Cwicseolfor: BestBuy, Walmart, yes. Costco, no. In your membership agreement, you acknowledge and allow Costco to search your person and packages upon exit of the store. Usually, it's just checking the reciept or unbagged merchandise, but sometimes (at least in my experience) they will check a bookbag or oversized purse for security.

I worked store security for WalMart in my youth (plainclothes), and was responsible for training the employees to conform to the WalMart rules for stopping suspected shoplifters. Here are those simple rules:
Do not stop anyone unless you or another employee observed the suspect conceal the item, and KEPT eyes on them up to the point where they have passed the last register on their way out the door.

This policy is designed to protect WalMart because they have been successfully sued several times for detaining people that knew they had been spotted, got out of the employee's view, and ditched the item before leaving the store.

I'm sure most other large retail stores have similar policies (I know Kmart did in the 90's as I was good friends with their store security here).

Now then, I generally don't have an issue with showing my receipt as it has prevented me from getting double charged a couple times, and even prevented me from leaving without an item I had paid for on several occasions. However, there are times when I am late, and lines are long that I just don't have the time.

That said, if someone called me an asshole, I would make the time to very publicly embarrass them, and demand a manager so I could embarrass them as well, and do it loudly enough for everyone in the front of the store to hear me (I have a good command voice).

This kind of behavior is just flat unacceptable. I do not see that the victim should require compensation, but as a manager, were I to face such an accusation, I would definitely offer it because I know the most important thing about customer service: on average a satisfied customer will tell 2-3 people about their experience with your establishment. An unsatisfied person will tell an average of 19 people about their dissatisfaction with your establishment (this figure is from the late 90's so I'm sure the internet makes that 19 into like 1900).

How many people just read this article and now have ill will towards BB?

Would it be worth a couple hundred dollars for BB to get him to update this post saying he got $200 in gift cards and a flowery apology from an Exec at BB? Financially speaking without question.

Personally I have never had a store employee lay hands on me (I'm 6'5" and pretty broad in the shoulder, so that may have something to do with it), but I would not hesitate to wreck someone's shit if they did. Physical assault is something I will not abide when the store is on sketchy legal grounds at best.

Good Lord, I am soo tired of this demanding gift certificates crap. Ohh... you got called a bad name... Fine, yea you absolutely deserve an apology, probably even a nice written one, But why does every little thing suddenly require some sort of monitary reward?

I hate people that demand a random gift card or discount for every little thing. I dont even understand how that equates in your mind? "I was offended, I deserve money"

poor babies...

Why, exactly, should I be courteous, cooperative, and respectful to a corporation that treats me like a criminal ON EVERY OCCASION, no matter what actions I perform or do not perform?

Apparently your demands for courtesy only go one way -- for the little guy to bend over for corporate America. (Where's your condemnation for the employee calling the customer "asshole"? COMPLETELY unacceptable.) Why aren't the corporations respecting ME? You seem to have bought into their one-way relationship model where THEY dictate everything and you sit down, shut up, and like it.

And I am always nice at stores. I've worked retail.

if i were him, i'd be less mad at the receipt checker and more mad at the 2 stores that said they had the receivers and ultimately wasted his and his baby's time. so while the manager apologized for the rudeness of the guy doing his job, it seems the 2 stores that lied about their stock is being overlooked.

i doubt he's really expecting compensation instead of a more sincere apology.

I'm sure that some Germans got great deals on former ghetto property too, but some people find it abhorrent to trade "saving money" in exchange for sacrificing rights more precious.

I'm pretty sure violations of privacy and the very real dangers posed by security theater ARE legitimate battles.

For all the "Receipt-Check Apologists" who have no problem with doing free loss-prevention work for the various retailers I ask, why do you allow a private citizen to search you on demand (keeping in mind that the courts have ruled that "corporations" are, for legal purposes, "citizens")?

If a stranger on the street asked to look at your personal belongings- which the products you've purchased become the moment the store accepts payment- would you allow them to? Can just anyone search you on demand?

Stores have exactly two "rights" over their clientele- they can refuse to sell you a thing, and they can ask you to leave the premises. Beyond that, they cannot make any demands or stipulations that you are legally enjoined to accept or accede to. They can "reserve" whatever rights they want (e.g., signs proclaiming "We reserve the right to inspect bags/packages etc"), but we don't have to allow it by any stretch of logic.

If it's no big deal to you, that's fine, work for them for free, because that's what you're doing...

@Will_ND: "Why not just show your receipt? It deters shoplifting and helps keep prices down."

No. It. Does. Not. Most "shrinkage" comes from employees, and receipt checking doesn't stop shoplifters, who put things in their POCKETS or under their sweatshirts or in bags from other stores. Receipt-checking is a useless waste of time and manpower that annoys customers and does NOTHING to stop shrinkage.

If you have real evidence a theft has occurred, feel free to detain and present your evidence. Otherwise I am walking to my car with my property and will take steps to protect myself from any attempted violence on "Best" Buy's part.

HOWEVER,

People who say that asking for the receipt is "accusing me of theft" are freaking ridiculous. Is making you sign your credit card slip accusing you of theft? Is scanning your item to make sure you are charged the correct price accusing you of theft? No - they are all just measures the stores take to a) verify your identity and b) verify that you are paying the right amount for the items you have. How is then just doing a double-check that your items match your receipt amount to "accusing you of theft". Answer: It isn't.

Wonder if "Best" Buy pulls this receipt check nonsense in their Texas stores - if they do it with the gusto they pull in other states then they probably have a lot of employee turnover (in the grave...).

All these comments favoring "Best" Buy's right to INSIST on a right to something they simply do not have and get a large percentage of compliance is EXACTLY why things escalate to this point. It's the same as dealing with a woman who says "NO" repeatedly - your physical blocking, yelling at her, threatening violence on her, etc. does NOT change the fact that "NO MEANS *NO*."

"Best" Buy has to IMMEDIATELY TERMINATE any of their employees that don't adhere to this. Otherwise they are basically sponsors of terrorism.

Umm. People in blue shirts don't ever check door receipts at a Best Buy. They have yellow shirts to let you know that they have a differnt job.

And if they did punch them in the face.

@post_break: Can someone enlighten me, why is it that you have the right to decline to show them your receipt? I have read countless posts on this issue but I am still slow on catching up.

Obviously the phrase "innocent until proven guilty" is one you're not familiar with. Or maybe you're just slow, as you said yourself.

If stores want to stop theft, call the police instead of harassing and insulting customers. Better yet, build a wall to force everyone to go through the cashiers to get to the exits. It would be a one-time cost equal to the annual salary of the inept employee who insulted the customer.

Forget the legal stuff for a sec. How about showing your receipt as an act of courtesy, cooperation, and respect.

Refusing to acquiesce to a rude personal demand from a stranger is neither discourteous nor disrespectful.

Being belligerent and ornery when dealing with others doesn't make you tough -- it justs makes you belligerent and ornery. Is is really so painful to be nice?

I fail to see how saying "No, thank you" with a smile on your face is belligerent or ornery. In my experience belligerence at a receipt check comes from the blueshirt who doesn't like people flouting his "authority"

Where this company gets off violently threatening and physically abusing people and their property is beyond me, don't know what business school preaches that as a way to win over people.

Hopefully this latest economic downturn will finally wipe these "Best" Buy "assholes" into the toilet of failed corporate history where they are heading fast.

Most people seem to be missing the point here and concentrating on the reciept-checking. The way I see it, Best Buy failed this customer three different times. He went to two different stores, both of which had the product in stock but couldn't locate it, and neither of those stores gave him anything but advice to go to another store? That's insane. Both stores should have given him a 20% off coupon and/or offered to ship him the product for free. No wonder he didn't want to participate in their stupid reciept dance at the third store. In any case, swearing at a customer is unacceptable and that employee should have been formally written up.

You really need to focus your ire on the corporation allowing illegal enforcements, not the customers.

@kJeff: They probably just aren't checking receipts in that store. I haven't been in a Best Buy in forever but they didn't check anyone's receipt last time I was there.

@kJeff:

With large T.V.s the employees go over the headsets and annouce it was purchased so that the people at the door are aware and ready to help you lift it into the car if neessary. Although, my Best Buy just 3 days ago had 4 46" T.V.s make it out the door stolen. That's why they are jerks sometimes.

@rennyn:

Policy is to check every single item not in a sealed plastic clear Best Buy bag, those special bags are used in certain areas of the store, gps/ digital imaging for example. If they didn't bother to check for that c.d. you bought and walked out with in a blue bag then they technically aready broke the rules to make it easier on them and you.

And if this guy did call the customer an asshole he should be fired. One thing to do your job, another to insult a good, paying customer.

For the love of god, can someone post where it states in your Costco/Sam's member agreement that you have to show your receipt.

[www.costco.com]

p.29 General Policies:
" ... all receipts and merchandise will be inspected as you leave the warehouse"

p.28 Membership Cards and Fees:
"Memberships may be terminated at Costco's discretion."

"

If the OP had complained about being asked, that *might* be construed as whiny, but being called a name just for buying something and leaving is ridiculous.

If his "son desperately needed a nap', maybe he shouldn't have been in the store in the first place.

The guy was just trying to do his job, and this person was being an asshole, or so it seems by his own words. Does that give the BB employee the right to call him one? Well yes, at the expense of his job. If he wanted to keep his job, no, he should have not have called a customer an asshole. Should the BB employee be fired? Probably so.

Most people who shop at BB more than one time know they might get asked for their receipt. In knowing this, they should keep it handy, as to not slow themselves down on the way out.

Both parties involved in this situation should have handled themselves better. The consumer was being an ass, and the employee was out of line by calling him an asshole. Even if he was correct in his assumption.

Wow, Bobby sure comes off like a whiney douche here.

Their policy is to check receipts at times to help keep theft and losses down. Their prices aren't the best, but you can bet they'd be higher if they just let people walk out with merchandise randomly.

@Will_ND: Saying 'No' is not rude or disrespectful.

I've shopped regularly at Best Buy for years and years and I've never once been asked to show a receipt. Including the time that I bought a 46" LCD... What shady actions are you doing that's making security question you?

and associated "being asked to see a receipt" with "being detained" is a tad bit over-dramatic. When I read these stories I always assume the customer flies off the handle when being asked and starts yelling, which makes the store call the cops, but then the customer conveniently leaves their tantrum out of the recollection they send to The Consumerist. Customers are assholes, I'm glad someone is willing to say it.

If you want to hold customers to etiquette obligations how about holding the corporation to its legal obligations?

Why should the optional stuff be mandatory and the mandatory stuff be optional?

@linus: If you punch the person, and run away BEFORE the police arrive but after they have been called, is it then unlawful flight to avoid arrest, etc?

I'll show it if I set off the alarm. This only happens in a grocery store I go to if you buy something like steak or an item from the pharmacy ( and half the time they just wave me on anyway ).

Otherwise I'd just keep walking but to be honest it's never come up in the city I live in now. Part of that may be that I don't shop in a lot of different stores.

Apology is all he should get at best. people like him do this hoping they will get free stuff...

Societal norms and rules of behavior are not all written in the law. Do you ever hold the door for someone? Do you shovel the snow on your neighbor's sidewalk? Since you don't legally have to be polite, are the lawyers and wanna-be lawyers on this board ever polite?

Best Buy wants more than anything to make money. They want you to return and return and buy and buy. Shoplifting is such a problem that Best Buy and other retailers have decided that it's worth the risk of perceived harassment to check receipts at the door. Simply capitalism and society at work.

@girly:

Fair enough. There are some overzealous people who just blindly follow "corporate law" thinking it is right but I can say first hand that I've yelled at Best Buy Loss Prevention people and made them let "people go."

There will always be stupid people. This guard may have been one of them but I'm just saying give him the benefit of the doubt and take the anger out on corporate Best Buy.

I'm just afraid for this guy, who I've never met. He may now lose a job because he followed orders and the company may "make him eligable for a reward zone card" to save its own face.

And everyone stop bashing geek squad. They're trying. They recently replaced every store owned computer in the country to prevent viewing of customer's files. Obviously it's easy to get around but they're trying. Time to go proudly put on my clip-on and work with some great folks you all could be proud of.

Why does it have to be a battle in the first place? The employees should be told to let it go when the customer doesn't want to show the receipt.

Picking battles wisely is a lost art. Now, people either roll over at the first sign of authority, or fight everything (warranted or not). I don't battle a minimum wage drone over doing his job, even if I don't agree with his job. I complain to managers sometimes if the Best Buy loss prevention (LP) guy is particularly abusive or gung-ho, but the poor LP guy shouldn't be punished because I disagree with the store's policies. However, if they try to detain me because I don't want to show my receipt, I would fight that to the Supreme Court.

I usually just smile pleasantly, say "Have a nice day/night", and keep walking. About 80% of the time, I am not asked to show my receipt. The other 20% of the time (tenacious LP employees), I innocently ask them if they think I stole what I am carrying (in a Best Buy plastic bag). The LP guy usually looks embarrassed and says no, and I keep walking. The few times this has failed, I show my receipt, because doing any more is senseless in such a battle, and more a waste of my time since arguing/fighting any more will have no effect on Best Buy policies.

"Even though it's a pretty short drive in terms of miles, it took almost an hour due to highway traffic. Finally I got to the Bucktown store, made my purchase, and started to leave."

WTF - how is this relevant?

Maybe more do it because they are intimidated by BB and that's just as bad on corporate's part.

@mockidol:
...and I tped like 5 words incorretly.
Lame.
Forgive the typos please.

@girly:

Good. But be known, the empoyees tend to hate doing is as well. I hate to say it but, "We all have to pay the rent."

I myself won't shop at CC becuase of a similiar event that happenned to be. It's just penny counting folks up top threatening our jobs that get us little guys to do this crap.

"allow any employees to think that harassing customers and/or breaking the law is the right thing to do."

Fact is, the above quote is placing blame unfairly. Most only find it "right" in the respect that they have to do it to keep their job. They don't allow it, they force it.

Screw the man and all of that...

I normally just walk out. But, when I WANT to be an asshole I wave my receipt at them or I just show them the back of the receipt, and walk out before the say anything. I did technically "show" them the receipt.

I honestly don't understand the arguments people get into over this, its not like there is personal information on the receipt and they mostly just check to see that you have one, and maybe just count the total number of items in the bag and indicated on the receipt.

Were you talking on your cell during the purchase transaction and while exiting the store? Of course, this isn't illegal, simply rude. Maybe this is why you don't want to be interrupted by the loss-prevention dept.

Consider mellowing-out and picking your battles more wisely.

Well, I'm a Best Buy employee for the ever so hated Geek Squad. While I would ask to be slapped if I ever did half the crap some other GS employees have done, that have been reported here, give this security guard a break.

He is paid minumum wage with little to no training. In fact, the apologetic manager was probably the one who told him to check every receipt "no matter what". I've seen security guards get fired for backing down on these sort of things. Basically, blame the big guys, not the little ones.

Also, these stores have a way to check stock that may say they have 5 of something but the system sucks and normally says there is 8 of something when in fact it just hasn't pushed updates in days.

My suggesstion, contact corporate Best Buy people to complain about polices because problems like this arise from poorley paid people just doing what they're told to prevent losing their job.

Haha. Good idea. But there would still be those who would simply say "No thanks, I don't need that receipt" and walk out without it.

On a similar note, when I was at Disney in FL this past May I noticed a fingertip scanner on the entry turnstiles. They didn't seem to be any type of requirement for entry but it appalled me to see how many people just blindly stuck their thumbs on the pad. No question what-so-ever.

My new mission in life is to get out the door with my $5 set of strings without that whole runaround

Try this: When they say "CAN I STAMP YOUR RECEIPT PLEASE?" just smile, say "No, thank you", and keep walking.

Solution for Best Buy or Walmart: send the receipt to a printer at the door. The customer picks up their receipt from the person at the exit, who checks it against what the customer is carrying out.

What I simply do is walk right past them and if someone chases me down while I'm walking to my car, then that's when I show my receipt. If they're that insistent on seeing it then so be it. As long as they aren't touching or tasering me, they can check all they want while I'm loading up my car.

Simply show your receipt and save your strength for a legitimate battle. Trust me, you'll know the true battle when it arrives one day.

I'm sorry that my unwillingness to submit to the demands of someone who has no authority over me doesn't qualify as "important enough" for you. Tell me, how are you coming along with that cure for cancer?

My new mission in life is to get out the door with my $5 set of strings without that whole runaround. I can understand the whole "please check your case at the door/can we see your guitar case?" because it's surprisingly easy to walk out of a store with a $2K guitar... but yeah, this receipt business has gotta go.

Plus every Best Buy I've been through has had some broseph checking receipts.

@TinyBug: Just checked VA's web site and it matches up. The key here is "pending arrival of a law-enforcement officer." If they aren't calling the cops, you don't have to wait. You can always verify by calling the police yourself and saying that you're being illegally detained.

And if they don't care as long as you're not setting off the alarm then why are asking to see the receipt in the first place?

If you ask me, being a criminal illegal detainer is much worse than being an 'uppity' customer.

So, only when you're given a pat down and/or metal detector wanding will you speak up and take action against having your papers checked?

Sorry . . . no receipt checks, no pat downs, no metal detectors, no x-rays. If you want to accuse me of stealing, you go right ahead. Remember, there is civil liability with false accusation. There is false arrest, which also carries civil liability. It should be left at that.

Easiest way to avoid the receipt check? If you have a small bag, just swing it between the door sensors before walking through it.

Actually, there's an easier way - just smile and say "No, thank you"

I pick my battles. This is not one of them.

Fair enough. But I find it interesting that you consider this a "battle" that's not worth fighting. What's the battle? Where's the fight?

I never really understand why people in these discussions always seem to think that the refusers are a bunch of puff-chested self important assholes shouting out insults at the poor guy just doing his job, or spittle flecked Ron Paul lunatics screaming about Constitutional rights to the little old lady with the blue smock.

They ask to see my receipt. I say "No, thank you" and walk out. The end.

Sometimes they continue yelling "Sir! Sir!" behind me. Again, this is no battle, I just ignore them. Again, no hassle, no confrontation, no problem, no battle, no inconvenience, no stress.

Only twice in almost a decade of doing this has there been anything remotely close to a problem, and only one of those two times would even be anything one would consider a hassle. And even THAT was less than thirty seconds before the under trained and overly belligerent blueshirt got out of my way and let me leave. Without checking a damned thing.

Actually, that particular encounter did become a "battle" - but that was entirely at my discretion. Because frankly, when some blueshirt thinks he can literally lay hands on me and shove me around, then I do become kind of vindictive. And no, this is not some internet tough guy thing - I simply let the cops handle it.

So really, when you give in, you're not really avoiding a problem, you're avoiding a very small chance that there might possible be some problem. And the more people who give in, and the longer they do it for, the more likely it becomes that those blueshirts start to think that they not only have the right to ask to see your receipt, but the authority to make you produce it. And that's when it starts to be a real problem.

@posaune: You hit it right on the head! If you don't like the policies and procedures of a particular business, then don't do business with them. No one is putting a gun to your head to shop at Best Buy, Circuit City or Walmart.

Also, to the OP, having your receipt checked is not that big of a deal. Sure, he shouldn't have called you an asshole, but I've been called much worse. In the essence of full disclosure, I do work part-time for Best Buy in the Greater Boston area. At the end of my shift I have to turn out my pants pockets and have my jacket patted down by LP or management before I can leave as well as have my receipt checked for any purchase I make, whether it's for a pack of gum or anything else.

In order for a store to detain you for shoplifting they must meet the requirements, which basically runs like this:

- They have to see you pick up the item and try to steal it
- They can NOT lose visual contact with you while in the store, as you could have put the item back during that time they didn't see you
- They have to try to see you try to leave the store with the item. They may not stop you until you have left the store

If those criteria are not met a shoplifting case would get thrown out of court. If they detain you without meeting those criteria chances are that you could file suit against them for a variety of reasons. False detainment, since a store has no right to detain you unless they meet those criteria or witness you committing another crime, and they can only hold you while wiating for the police. If the person at the door gets physical (e.g. grabs your arm, pushes you back into the store), then they're looking at assault & battery. At this point you could probably also justify physically disabling them in the name of self defense (don't shoot or stab anyone), though I would advise against it since you get into some mucky areas of the law at this point. If a police officer actually arrested you for refusing to show your receipt you could hold the city on false arrest, since arresting people when they didn't break the law tends to be frowned upon by the judicial system.

Of course this doesn't stop these things from happening, but it does give you some recourse if it does happen.

/holds up his Internet lawyer degree.. thanks Consumerist!

Sooooo because I exercised MY personal rights it's a reason for "Probably Cause"?

I'm sorry, but this argument does not hold water.

I have to admit that if it's more convenient I show my receipt. If it'd be a hassle like when: I already tucked it into my wallet (usually on big items), my son is getting very cranky, I am in a hurry, and the receipt check would take more than a few seconds, etc. THEN I exercise my right to decline a personal search. Whether I bought a pack of gum, or a big-screen TV.

Also this is not effective at stopping theft. Most of the theft from these sorts of places are video games, DVDs, and other "petty" easily accessibly items. Yet the receipt checkers here always intercept the dudes with TV's. I walked out with my purchased XBox 360 while the guy that was buying an office chair (it was in a big box) got "checked".

It's honestly a useless policy that does nothing but annoy the legitimate customers, and so I will continue to exercise my rights when I choose.

@baconqurlyq:

Sure, it's a different story with Costco. But what irritates me is the large sign that our local Costco has in front of their door. The sign explains that our receipts need to be checked only to be sure we weren't overcharged for any items, and to be sure we didn't forget any items on our way out.

Right.

@Coder4Life: Have you ever gone shopping with a 7 month old child that needed a nap? I have and bought a large item and after getting my change, I placed the change and receipt in my pocket and picked up my son and the item I just paid for and made for the exit. With a squirming child and a package, there is no way I am going to try and get out my receipt just to show it. I have better things to do and one of the first is to get my child into his car seat so that I can take him home for his nap.

The thing that sucks about Best Buy more is their 15% restocking fee (regardless of the price of what you purchased). If you wanted to return what your purchase in retaliation, then you'd be stuck paying for 15% of it.

Odd thing is, the cops nearly did an anal probe on ME about 10 minutes for information, but with that bastard they were in and out in a couple minutes. When I asked the po-po about it, he said "oh, we already know him." Apparently the cops are over there all the time on shoplifting gigs, so maybe "Best" Buy gives them discounts and such so they don't really investigate "Best" Buy violence.

I contacted "Best" Buy corporate and they confirmed to me that showing a receipt is up to MY discretion and that this GM was not supposed to be violently threatening people that opt out of their game. Apparently he got his hand slapped, doubt his job went away over it but he had better watch his back because the next person he pulls that on might be waiting on him in the parking lot after work...

When you enter a "Best" Buy, you take your life in your hands. Be prepared.

@TinyBug: Huh...I must have been looking at a older, unupdated site. Do you have a link that I could read?

Fry's, OTOH.

@girly: AH...then yes, it is illegal for a store to detain you simply because you don't show a receipt. Then it's unlawful imprisonment or kidnapping. I like kidnapping because it sounds sexier.

In an unrelated note, if I were to be convicted of a crime, I'd want it to be extortion. The 'x' makes it cool. :-) (Futurama reference)

In VA, it's legal for a store to detain you for a short amount of time to check your bags if you set off the alarm.

The time is defined by how long it takes for them to search your bags.

Actually, I took a look, and in Virginia the length of time is defined by the statute - it's one hour exactly. As for checking your bags, I see nothing in the Virginia statutes that gives the storekeeper that authority (it may be there, I'm not a lawyer), only the authority to detain you for up to one hour until the police arrive.

It's also interesting that Virginia is a Probable Cause state, so I would disagree that setting off the electronic alarm is enough to justify detention - PC is a pretty high bar. But until an actual case gets to a high enough level (in other words, most likely never), it's probably smartest to assume that the buzzer is enough for PC.

For those of you wondering about loss prevention, and detainment, I had an interesting experience a few months ago.

I went to buy some headphones at best buy, on 86th street and Lexington ave in Manhattan, and the register is on the bottom floor and the security staff at the top floor near the entrance.

Anyway, I slipped past the long security line, and the door alarm went off, but I kept walking even after they yelled at me.

The entrance to the subway is right outside the store, so I immediately went down, and a loss prevention officer followed me to the turnstile.

I went through, but I guess he didn't have the fare to get on.

At this point, he started being polite to me asking me to please just talk to him.

So, across the turnstile, he said he was sorry I was so agitated but asked me not to return to the store if I was not going to cooperate with their policies.

I guess that was the professional thing to do, and I almost felt guilty.

@dequeued: "How would it be any different if Best Buy hired someone in a clown costume to run around the store with a megaphone shouting insults at customers?"

That made me lol. Oh and it's different because that would be entertainment! HA!

@AgentTuttle: Thank you for your useful post.

And why does everyone here think only the government can violate your rights, etc.?

I might be wrong, but if someone detains you or searches you against your will, they've violated your rights and/or falsely imprisioned you and/or assaulted you.

@ScubaSteveKzoo:

I think my analogy was very accurate.

So Best Buy is paying someone to act like an annoying todler and demand that you show them your receipt.

So what?

How would it be any different if Best Buy hired someone in a clown costume to run around the store with a megaphone shouting insults at customers?

Also, I don't care if the person being a jackass is doing it because they are paid to do it, or just doing it pro-bono, my reaction will be the same: Fuck off!

I'm not arguing with anyone's 'right to refuse'; I'm just showing why these policies are in place. In the long run, it reduces costs for everyone and cuts down on illegal activity.

Or you can go to this website and download a PDF that looks like a receipt, you hand it to the employee and it explains to them why THEY are the asshole for asking and not you for refusing. [www.glocktalk.com]

@girly: It would only be a legal violation if the company had a policy requiring you to show a receipt on condition to exiting the store. Only the club stores have this, though.

I don't think BB or any other store can require you to show a receipt without a contract.

@brainwav:
It's not about the time, it's the principle, for me atleast.

It's an invasion of privacy. I'm not doing anything wrong, so why not let the cops search my house?

You do have to in places like Costco and Sam's because it's part of the membership agreement.

Costco is the one place I actually do show my receipt. But even there you don't have to. Don't get me wrong, you should - you agreed to it when you joined - but that still doesn't give them any more actual authority over you than any other store.

@TinyBug: In VA, it's legal for a store to detain you for a short amount of time to check your bags if you set off the alarm.

The time is defined by how long it takes for them to search your bags. If they can't find it and the alarm continues go off, they can call the police to search you. They themselves cannot touch you.

@ScubaSteveKzoo: You and I are alike in the fact that we don't mind getting our receipts checked. It's minimal in terms of time and it's better than a confrontation.

However, I will still defend anyone's right to refuse it. Just because I'm okay with it doesn't mean everyone else is. That person shouldn't be subjected to profanity or harrassment just because he is choosing not to comply with a non-deputized security personel.

To be clear, there is no rights violation here since Best Buy is not a government entity. It's a company. An accurate parallel would be me asking you to show your receipt before getting in your car. I'm just a regular Joe with nothing better to do than check everyone's receipt for no reason. If you wouldn't do it for me, you shouldn't have to do it for Best Buy.

I hope you get your laptop seized next time you go through customs. What would be the big deal? So what if you didn't do anything wrong, it's for security. Best buy should have conditioned you for it.

@Jackasimov: You do have to in places like Costco and Sam's because it's part of the membership agreement.

But there isn't any such agreement in places like Best Buy. I doubt it's even posted.

@The Count of Monte Fisto:

This has nothing to do with constitutional rights or anything, and I can say I actually put my money where my mouth is, and get really offended when people ask for my id.

They can't just look at you after you went through the register or not knowing if you passed it without paying and then suspect you.

No, it's not. You need physical proof in form of video or testimony. The words your looking for are "Probable Cause", and that's restricted to Police.

If stores were to go by what you just said, there would be a hell of a lot of Illegal Detaining / Illegal Arrest lawsuits going around.

A few commenters mentioned that it would be OK to detain someone if the door alarm went off, is this true? I've had the alarm go off MANY times on me, and I can assure you that none of them were due to me stealing something.

This depends on the State, and is most likely not a firmly established rule anywhere. I've seen at least one case (no, I haven't the slightest idea where, when, or even the final outcome, sorry) where the alarm was considered "reasonable suspicion" by the court. I can't imagine that it would ever rise to Probable Cause, but IANAL.

In any case an argument can be made that it is doesn't meet either standard, we've all seen those things go off hundreds of times when no theft was involved.

Short version: I dunno

You deserve to be thrown in jail seriously. your son needed a NAP? are you kidding? show the damn reciept and keep walking seriously.

You probably have wasted more time by not showing your reciept, writing this email to them and frustrated over the situation. I bet it was all worth it right? NOT!!!!

@krispykrink: Ha ha ha, I like that, I like it! If everyone did that, maybe it would stop!

A month or so ago, I fired off an email to Walmart corporate telling them I would not stop for receipt checking (besides the obvious, do they not get that it BLOCKS THE EXIT???) The manager of the store I went to called me a week later and asked me what the problem was. Apparently they told her there was a problem at her store, but not what the email was about. I was shocked that they called me, because after I (politely) vented, I had forgotten all about it!

I told her and we had a good laugh over it. Then I told her I would keep coming to her store but that I wouldn't stop for Receipt Nazis.

YO, CONSUMERIST: Can we get a comprehensive article on this issue? Maybe you could do some research and turn it into one of your features. Every time a story like this is posted there are always comments, and it seems like some people think one thing, others, another.

It could include any of the following:
Membership stores having it written into their agreement
Whether it is OK to detain if the door alarm goes off
What the SPECIFIC reasons for not having to submit to having your receipt are (talking points for us to reiterate if we find ourselves in that situation)
Any states that have it as a law
Employees following customers into the parking lot (I believe this is illegal in New Hampshire)
What the over all laws are

If we had this, then we could refer back to the article to all the new readers with questions.

Thanks!

I don't understand why someone would run all over town to find a DirecTV receiver. Won't DirecTV just ship you one if you call them?

@Jackasimov: well, it turns out that it's part of the "rules of shopping".

Again: It's his JOB to ask. If it's rude, then it is a rude POLICY and not some personal demand.

Yes yes, I get it that it's his job. And that it's not personal. And that it's not a rude guy, it's a rude policy. I got that from before you even made your fist comment. So what? It's not really all that different than if the store made the door guy say "excuse me sir, I need to look through your wallet before you leave."

Actually it is different, because while MY response would be the same (i.e. "No"), I suspect many of the "go along to get along" people in these threads might finally begin to get it.

Lighten up.

Twice now I've said that if you wish to submit to their demands to avoid potential inconveniences, that's your prerogative. I choose not to. "Go along to get along" is the mantra of a submissive society.

@reed311: actually, no, it's not reasonable cause. observing you physically stealing something, THAT's reasonable cause.

What I understand is that if you go beyond the point of purchase with an unpaid for item they have the right to detain you. If they don't have that right, they should. If, buy not showing your receipt you are admitting you have not possibly not paid for your item then that causes confusion and suspicion on the part of the guards who clearly cannot have eyes on every corner of the store at one time. I think it's not necessary to have to make a case out of this.

Now if it were my store I'd not let you come back on general principle. It would be hard to enforce that ban I guess on people who won't stop for a photo or to be identified, as well as for people who refused to be denied entry into a store they feel they have a right to enter and shop at (and possibly steal from), but I'd make the best of it.

@reed311: "Please stop spouting all the crap about trampeling the Constutition, as that is a non-issue as private businesses are under no obligation to follow the same strict-guidelines that the Government and police are."

So I can kidnap you and lock you in a cage and nothing will happen to me since I'm not the government or the police?

Also, if I remember correctly, the police and government have immunity to anything they do, so wouldn't it be the other way around?

@Eyebrows McGee: Yes!

@ScubaSteveKzoo:

It's someone trying to do his job, which he's told to do at a fairly low wage.

To me this is the most confounding part of the whole thing. If someone's giving you $7/hour to stand at the door and harangue people to see their receipts, would you really bother chasing someone into the parking lot over it??? The guys who actually take the job seriously really creep me out.

Allow me to Godwin the thread and say ... it was only 5 seconds of your time when the Nazis said "Papers, please!"

@posaune: "I'm still not convinced that it's not the company's right to ask for a receipt. If it's store policy, than by choosing to shop there, you accept their policy. No one is forcing you to shop at stores with such policies."

For this sort of policy, in a place of public accommodation, it must be clearly posted so you can "agree" to it when entering the store or opt not to do business there. They cannot spring these policies on you at the exit.

@reed311: "If someone is leaving your store and you ask for their receipt and they say "no", that is reasonable cause to believe that they may have stolen your property."

In most states, refusal to show your receipt or submit to having your bags searched is specifically legally NOT reasonable cause to believe that shoplifting has occurred.

It's not an unlawful search. But if you refuse to show your receipt and they refuse to let you leave, that IS false imprisonment, and refusal to show a receipt is NOT adequate suspicion of shoplifting to justify them holding you.

Also, if the guy knows about Consumerist, he should know to stay away from BB.

For heaven's sake no, not rudeness! And inconvenience? We need to put our many feet down.

@Bobby,
As a fellow Chicagoian, why are you shopping at Best Buy? We have the highest sales tax in the country. I order anything over $20 off of Amazon and get a better price, better customer service and avoid the whole discussion over receipts.

When I worked at a Best Buy while attending college and most of the theft was from employees. Half a dozen people were terminated for stealing in the short time I worked there. While I have no idea what their motive is behind the receipt checking, it throws a pretty wide net - I don't believe I ever saw or even heard of anyone being caught stealing by checking their receipt.

First of all, stores need a lot more than a "belief" that you have shoplifted in order to detain you. look up "probable cause" and "reasonable suspicion"

Second, failure to show a receipt does not rise to that level in any jurisdiction I'm aware of. You may think it's suspicious, but from a legal standpoint, it is not. By all means, show me even a single statute or court case wherein failure to show a receipt was considered, by itself, to give rise to Reasonable Suspicion of shoplifting.

And most people who refuse the voluntary receipt checks do so not because they can't take 20 seconds to do it, but because they 1) Don't habe to and 2) don't want to. it's not because we're "more important", it's because we see no reason to submit to the demands of someone who has no authority to make demands of us.

So after I say "no thank you", I can walk off..neither of our rights infringed upon. it's when the overzealous workers forget that they have no right to detain that the problems start.

D-

If we lose our right to deny to show our receipt, then we will definitely stand up. That's too much. Look, I have the right to vote, and sometimes I may not. It's not like the government is going to say, "well these schmucks show their receipt, so we might as well take their right to not show it"

Would never happen, congressmen haven't been to a store in 30 years. They have no clue this happens.

If this makes a great climate for thieves, then maybe they need to rethink how transactions are completed.

Just because they are worried about theft doesn't give them the right to break the law (illegal detention, assault, intimidation, etc).

@TinyBug: I think you watch to many conspiracy and "stick it to The Man" movies.

My question is, what happens to all those prospective shoplifters while the security guard is chasing an innocent guy out into the parking lot?? LETS CALL THE NOLA LOOTERS!!

Pursue the issue if you want, if you feel like you're being violated, but there's many of us who just don't care about flashing a receipt on the way out. I'll be spending that additional 5 seconds waiting at the traffic light anyways.

But what if you did have to? What if that was part of the rules of shopping, to prove you made a purchase? If you know the rules then you make your choice to either: play by them, don't play by them, don't shop there, get into confrontations, or run. I just don't see that as far fetched at all. If I was a thief I would love this new constitutionally protected world where you can just flip the bird as you walk out with thousand dollar pieces of electronic equipment.

@posaune:

A store policy does not over-ride your rights in this country. I could create a policy that anyone entering my home, which is a private residence, could be shot without cause, but if I shoot someone you can bet the Police won't care about my "policy".

I don't care either way and I'll show my receipt if there's no line and just leave if there's a line, but that's my choice, not theirs. Remember once you have purchased that item it is your property and your choice whether to allow search or not.

"Excuse me, but I need to check your receipt!"

" You don't need to check my receipt..."

"....I don't need to check you- Hey wait a minute!"

"Worth a shot!"

And don't use you child as an excuse. Speaking as a father myself, that is pathetic. This is guy at BB just trying to do his job and rather than be an adult you have to "lawyer up" and cause a commotion.

Realize that the guy at the door making MW doesn't know about your daylong receiver-seeking odyssey. He's just trying to make do. He's a person who would appreciate your courtesy as much as you would his.

Your agitated state isn't his problem or his fault - it is yours. Calling you an asshole was unprofessional, but based on your comments I have no trouble believing that you were, in fact, being a bit of an asshole...

I always get so dissapointed with people reading these threads.

Don't any of you understand, you are citizens, and society is what you make it into!

Every day, being outside, interacting with people, conducting trade.

Every time you submit to a receipt check, you're implicitly telling everyone that this kind of behavior is acceptable.

And every time you resist, you're giving best buy a slap on the wrist for presuming be so rude.

Do any of you think a retailer could have gotten away with this kind of bs 30 years ago?

The only time you ever showed identification was if you withdrawing large sums of money from a bank, or crossing an international border.

And the anti-social forces will just keep pushing -- how long until you need to show your id just to get into a store?

And more importantly, how many of you would just go along with it?

Wow. I hope you got fired. No wonder CompUSA went out of business!

But to make you think you have to. Or make you afraid not to. Or to beat you up or harass you if you don't. That's wrong, and in some cases, illegal.

[Gonna play devil's advocate here...]
That's all well and good, but you could make the argument that a customer wouldn't know that receipt-checking is Best Buy's company policy when they walk in the door.

They then select an item, purchase it, and go to leave. At that point, they are asked to have their receipt checked, even though the receipt-checker should have just seen this individual purchase their items at the register 30 feet away.

According to your argument, by shopping at Best Buy, the customer is implicitly accepting this receipt-checking policy, even though they had no knowledge of the policy before checking out.

I'd be very curious to hear the typical age of a person who feels it's not a big deal to show a receipt and the age of a person who sees it as contributing to a general lack of privacy.

Don't make me shake my cane, but it seems younger folks are more apt to shrug their shoulders than question whether or not it's right.

t's a store. They have no common courtesy.

Nonsense. Virtually every store I shop in treats me with courtesy. Smiles, a polite "hello", "may I help you with anything, sir?", "have a nice day", etc. I understand it's not the fault of the individual guy asking, but that doesn't change the fact that it's rude.

2. ... it inadvertently escalated. That clearly didn't help his day any.

Dude, it wasn't inadvertent at all, and it sure as hell didn't escalate itself. It was the conscious and intentional actions of the blueshirt in response to a customer who was doing NOTHING WRONG that escalated the situation.

3 It's about just letting things go. It's less of an inconvenience to show your receipt than get verbally abused by the worker in front of your child and following it up with a written letter to the store. What takes more time, effort, and focus of your day?

Like I said, if you wish to submit to the rude personal demands of a stranger who has no actual authority in order to avoid the possibility of being inconvenienced, that's your prerogative. I just think it's a shame.

Servility in the name of convenience is not a virtue.

If someone is leaving your store and you ask for their receipt and they say "no", that is reasonable cause to believe that they may have stolen your property. No one is so busy that they can't talk 20 seconds to show their receipt. To suggest that you are is absurd and implies that your time is somehow worth it's weight in gold. If someone comes on your private property and you believe they may have stolen something, are you going to just let them walk out?

Unless you are living on Mars, then you know that these places check receipts. Don't be surprised and "offended" when they ask you for them. And don't be that jerk who acts like they are the most important person who ever existed.

I hope the OP gets a serious reply from Best Buy corporate, maybe in the form of an actual letter sent in the mail, instead of some stupid form email sent to him by an automatic reply mechanism.

@ScubaSteveKzoo:

Yes, it is often less of a hassle to just show your receipt than to now show it, but that's not the point.

Your logic is flawed, here's why:

Bestbuy is in fact creating the situation that makes it inconvenient to not show your reciept.

It's not as if having to show your reciept is normal and best buy is just putting up with it, this was best buy's idea, and I refuse to indulge them, even if they try to make it hard for me.

By your logic, if a todler demands something of yours, and starts throwing a temper tantrum, I guess you should just give in and give her whatever she wants, because it is "just easier"

Of course the crying baby will try to make it less convenient for you to not do what she wants; that doesn't mean you should give in.

Are you so easily manipulated that all someone has to do is lean on you slightly to get anything they want?

On a more general note, I don't want anyone to start defending this employee, or saying security guards shouldn't be blamed for doing their jobs.

I am happy to blame and take out my frustrations for stupid policies on low level security.

First, yes, they may not make the rules, but they gleefully choose to enforce them, so they are certainly somewhat responsible.

Second, about two thirds of them are complete douches that let their little scrap of authority go to their heads, and it's good for society to take them down a notch or two whenever possible.

Third, social presure always works it's way up; if everyone resisted invasive searches and gruff security policies, eventually whoever is in charge would be forced to ease off.

Not detain you (if they didn't see you take anything), or assault you, or verbally harass you.

The few times I've been at Costco, that's a different story. Where 99% of the time at Best Buy the knuckledraggers watch you purchase an item, the exit at Costco is usually miles away from the checkout line, there are no grocery bags, and the traffic in and out of those places is huge. Now there is a logical place for theft prevention, so I take the extra few minutes to wait for the security person to check my receipt against my purchases and wish them a good day. Because, dang, have you ever been to a Costco? I wouldn't want to work there. I try to be extra nice to those folks.

@TinyBug: It's not about being a pussy Mr. Internet tough guy, it's about personal respect. The receipt checker (probably) really doesn't know your rights and it's just not worth the verbal confrontation with someone when you're holding an infant. Don't be a douchebag...

About the same time people started calling each other names on the internet.

If you object and want to pursue this issue because it bothers you, that's fine, but being told that not being bothered makes you a sheep who doesn't care about your own legal rights seems unfair. I frequently comply with policies and requests that aren't legally enforceable. Sometimes, I simply choose to do things I don't have to do because it's no skin off my nose and it makes life easier for other people, including people who operate businesses. In this case, it's five seconds out of my life, and it probably does deter theft. I don't feel oppressed by Best Buy. I don't see a threat of it turning into a larger problem (unlike private businesses' handling of personal data, for instance, which I consider much more worth getting upset over).

As I've said, if you want to challenge this policy and explore the issue of whether or not they can legally keep you from leaving, you have that right. The law might well support a claim on your part that you've been falsely imprisoned or assaulted or whatever if they tackle you when you refuse. But I wish the discussion could stay away from accusations that showing my receipt demonstrates a lack of commitment to freedom.

Obviously, calling a customer an asshole has nothing to do with any of this, is inappropriate in any circumstance, and rightly resulted in an apology.

@Bladefist: That was the best post in this thread. Thumbs up. I despise Best Buy. I use them as my showroom for newegg.

I typically show my receipt like a sheep, because I know the receipt checkers don't know my rights, and will end up being physical with me, or calling the police. And with my luck, the police will be equally incompetent, and probably arrest me.

Translation: Even though I know they have no actual authority, I submit to their claimed authority because I'm afraid of what might happen if I don't.

When did America become such a bunch of pussies?

at BEST the customer gets to call the security guard an asshole back.

Get over it.

It seems to me they like things they way they are and want to create a culture of fear in their customers (showing the receipt is better than getting beat up by a 'rogue' employee).

1. It's a store. They have no common courtesy. Besides the fact that it is his job to ask. It's not a "personal request." Still, he should not have sworn.

2. I meant him being "huffy" after the fact, writing up a letter and sending it to The Consumerist. Not the initial act. Because he said no, it inadvertently escalated. That clearly didn't help his day any.

3. It's about just letting things go. It's less of an inconvenience to show your receipt than get verbally abused by the worker in front of your child and following it up with a written letter to the store. What takes more time, effort, and focus of your day? Instead of enjoying his DirecTV receiver he went home and (rightfully) wrote a letter.

If all the people who don't like showing receipts stopped shopping at the stores that have the receipt checking policy (i.e. Wal-Mart, Best-Buy, etc.) maybe they would change the policy.

I don't see what the big deal is about showing a receipt on the way out. The store's policy is that someone looks at your receipt on the way out--if you don't like the policy don't shop at the store. What is so difficult about that?

There is no fair compensation for being called an asshole. Some things should go in one ear and out the other. If the person at the store upset you so much then don't ever shop there again.

His attitude changed PDQ when I called the cops. My biggest mistake was allowing the cops to talk me out of filing a complaint, because apparently the management didn't learn a damned thing.

As far as what Bestbuy owes him, I'd say nothin. And why would you want a gift card? So you can go back and get checked at the door again and do it all over? Bestbuy/Sucker City are obsolete. I would just stop giving them my business, and perhaps send an email saying why.

I'm sorry, I still don't think showing your receipt is a big deal. It's an extra 5 seconds out of your day, and it will always avoid hassles like this.

No, I don't feel like my rights are violated by showing my receipt, or I feel like I did something wrong.

It's not about rights, it's about common courtesy. Simply put, it's rude. And the appropriate answer to a rude personal request is to ignore it, or to respond with a simple and polite "No."

It's better than getting all huffy over it getting blowing out of proportion.

I fail to see how saying "No, Thank you" is getting "huffy" or blowing anything out of proportion. If anything, it is the blueshirt at the door who almost inevitably blows things out of proportion by inappropriately escalating the situation.

Granted, he shouldn't have been sworn it, but that's not my point.

No, your point seems to be that you prefer to submit to the presumed authority of anyone who claims it over you in order to avoid the possibility of being hassled or inconvenienced. While that's certainly your prerogative, I think it's a shame

Ahh, OK, I see what you mean. You're right, it is certainly not a part of the transaction. But at the same time, a person stealing something would have something that belongs to the store. I think that receipt-checking is a good deterrent against the second instance.

Not if you don't want to show your receipt.

@Cwicseolfor: As I understand it, you can do it at any store that has no membership agreement. Generally Sams/Costco/BJs have a membership agreement that says that you'll submit to a receipt check.

Feel free to walk right past the senior citizen at walmart though. They've got no authority to stop you.

jail time could be a bit harsh.

But thats for the modern day sensitive customers in my opinion. If some security guard called me an asshole, it would have made me smile that I got the best of his anger, and I would possibly have goaded him more at that point to see if he would have gotten physical. In that case, helloooooo lawsuit!

@ScubaSteveKzoo: Nobody said anything about a lawsuit, and I was drawing a parallel. Use your brain and think about it. Don't expect WMU to teach you that either, I assume you're from the Zoo...

When you get to the point where you feel normal giving up your rights, you will loose those rights very quickly, never to be had again.

If a potential thief walks into the store and sees everyone having his receipt checked on the way out, then he is much less likely to try to walk out with stolen merchandise in a BB bag. Receipts (especially those dated that day) are much harder to fake than bags.

And let me ask most of you out there.... do you really believe that when a manager says they will reprimand an employee .... that he really does it?

Me, personally... I think managers probably get so many complaints that they figure most (if not all) are unwarranted..... & dismisses them & does NOT reprimand an employee. I personally want confirmation(proof) that something was done.

But the other stores, I don't see why anywhere in the US you shouldn't be able to exit a store with items you own without getting a beat down or verbal abuse.

I finally stopped going into Best Buy after I approached the register with a $40 item and said "Look, I just want to buy this and leave. I don't want a magazine subscription, I don't want an extended warranty, I don't want a points card, I just want to pay for this and leave. Don't waste your time trying to sell me something else, because if you do, I'm leaving this here and walking out." The clerk tried to sell me the replacement plan anyway. When I asked for a manager (so I could tell them why they lost my business) she told me that the clerks are required to offer it regardless of anything else, in defiance of all logic. I've already refused to buy it, why are you insisting on harassing me about it? The real kicker is when the manager insisted that they lose money on the replacement plan. I asked her to stop lying to me, since if they lost money on them, they wouldn't offer them. Sure, in one SPECIFIC case they'd lose money, but all the others that never get used are gravy and more than make up for a single loss.

I left the item on the counter and walked out. I haven't set foot in one since. I went across the lot and bought the item at Staples, where they allow you to just pay for the item and leave.

Because absent a criminal investigation, I'm under no obligation to justify or prove ownership of MY property to anyone, no matter how trivial or inconsequential their request may be.

If Circuit City would ever get its act together, they'd put Best Buy out of business in a few years. Unfortunately, they're even worse.

I think (and I'm totally assuming here, and this is NOT directly at the OP) that some of these pretentious a-holes who refuse to show receipt really do practically show up the system by proving that they "are entitled to NOT give up your right to unlawful search and the whole 'innocent until proven guilty' thing our country's legal system was founded on." Which makes you look even more pretentious, and, yes, suspicious.

No wonder America is so lawsuit-happy.

@ScubaSteveKzoo: If you had been indoctrinated to believe being molested was alright, and you didn't feel violated, would that make it right?

I politely declined to show my receipt as I was in a hurry, and the security guy was already pillaging another customers private over the shoulder bag. He started screaming at me, yelled that it wasnt his "fucking problem" that I was in a hurry, and "why did I have to be such a bitch?" As I turned in disbelief he ripped the receipt out of my hand, crumpled it up and tossed it on the ground. Then his manager walked over and began yelling at me.

Long story short, I sent my account of the incident to Best Buy corporate and all I got was put on their mailing list. Havent been in a Best Buy in over a year, nor has any of my family.

What an asshole, why not just stop for 20 seconds, throw your constitutional rights to the curb and be treated like a criminal. And you had a baby with you! Way to teach your son! He should learn at this young age that anyone whith a whiff of authorit-aaaa has the right to harass you, the sooner he learns that the better we'll all be.

And I bet you failed to take the other customers who sheepishly waited at the door for 2 minutes for the guard to come back so that they could have there receipts checked. Ass hole sounds just about spot on!

/sarcasm

Showing your receipt is not the same as an "unlawful search" in my book. They start doing pat-downs and x-rays and I'm out.

I wouldn't run a store like this just for the headaches of pissed off customers. That's worth some shrink.

Personally, I make a bee line to the returns counter when I'm asked for a receipt. Last time this happened I was at the counter not more than 3 feet from the door checker. He watched an employee bring my $500 stereo receiver up to the counter. He watched me pay for the item. Then he has to actually stop and demand I show my receipt. I say No. He asks again. I bee line it to the returns and leave them with no sale.

Why oh why do people shop at this store?!

But it should be equally 'no big deal' not to show it. Employees do not have the right to get abusive.

$100 Visa gift card so you don't have to use it at Best Try.

When you leave the register, you already own the item, so they can't really say 'show me the receipt or you can't leave with that' because you already own it!

They could maybe say, 'show me the receipt or I'll ban you' but that still should allow you to leave unmolested since banning you just means you have to leave the store anyway.

@ScubaSteveKzoo: What if there is a long line to EXIT the store because of receipt checking (ergo, much longer than 5 seconds)? Is it still not a big deal?

Since the OP wasted time going to three stores, and seemingly had checked stock first, this should justify compensation all by itself.

I'm thinking BB locates the product and ships to the customer, 20% discount on the product and free shipping.

After all, it's not very 'green' of BB to make a customer waste expensive gas and pollute the enviroment unnecesarily because they have a faulty inventory system.

Asshole isn't profane; its vulgar. God damn asshole would be profane.

@EllaMcWho: "Here's your gift certificate.....asshole."

@brainwav: jeebus. You just opened Pandora's box. Cue the storm in 3, 2, ...

@ScubaSteveKzoo:

That's fine if you want to show your receipt, you are entitled to give up your right to unlawful search and the whole "innocent until proven guilty" thing our country's legal system was founded on. You can't, however, expect ohers to do the same.

I have read countless posts on this issue but I am still slow on catching up.

LOL! I LOVE the "Reciept showing refuasl" stories here on consumerist. This one is awesome!

For me, compensation for being called an asshole by a store's employee..... fire that employee!

I'm serious. There is NO excuse for cursing at a customer.

I'm pretty sure a $25-$50 gift card to cover lost time, gas & mileage would suffice.

@Roclawzi:

It's been two years since I set foot in a Best Buy (I have my reasons) but they used to ask to check my receipt all the time. While I am white, I am also realatively young and therefore must be up to no good.

No, I don't feel like my rights are violated by showing my receipt, or I feel like I did something wrong.

It's better than getting all huffy over it getting blowing out of proportion.

Granted, he shouldn't have been sworn it, but that's not my point.

It sounds like the buyer kept a level head through the whole thing and the BB employee's behavior was very unprofessional and he needs to be held accountable for his actions, not hide behind the protection of a manager's corporate apology.

Also, unless you're in a hell of a hurry or you've got some "private" items (not that BB sells any), I don't see the problem with stopping for 20 seconds to let them check your bag.

Any employee that swears in the hearing of customers should get reprimanded - swearing at a customer? Now that's worth a gift certificate.