On an earnings call earlier this year, Costco chief financial officer Richard Galanti said the retail giant has seen some uptick in losses since installing self-checkout systems in selected stores six years ago but that theft is “thankfully, not a big issue for us.” East coast retailer Wegmans ended a mobile app last year that allowed customers to scan, bag and pay for groceries while they shopped after reporting losses. In the face of mounting losses, retailers are rethinking and retooling self-checkout systems including, in some cases, reducing or eliminating the option.ĬNN reports that Walmart removed self-checkout machines at some stores in New Mexico earlier this year and ShopRite pulled them at a Delaware store after customer complaints. If the hair-trigger weight in the bagging area dings, there’s still a chance an employee will override the sensor without doing a deep dive into the contents of the shoplifter’s bag. The “machine did it” involves covering up the item’s barcode with your hand or passing the item over the scanner upside down.If questioned, the shopper just says, “Oh, sorry, didn’t see it there.” Then they walk away without scanning it at all. Shoppers hide smaller items inside larger ones, or somehow obscure the item in their cart. The “honest mistake” is another common method.The shoplifter pays for a pack of crayons and walks out with a new television. This is the name for when consumers switch the barcode on one item for a lesser-priced item. The “switcheroo” is perhaps the most common method.So, how are shoppers taking advantage of self-checkout systems to walk out with merchandise they didn’t pay for or underpaid for? Here are a few common tactics, according to a report from senior legal writer, and lawyer, Joseph Fawbush: Here’s where prices are at this year for the traditional spread Target is advertising a $25 Thanksgiving dinner.Inflation, record interest rates aren’t going to keep the ho, ho, ho out of holiday spending this year.“Retailers could find themselves accused of making theft so easy that some customers who would normally - and happily - pay are tempted to commit crime, especially when they feel ‘justified’ in doing it,” the researchers said in a statement to the Times. While it’s not clear whether or not self-checkouts cultivate the urge to shoplift, researchers told The New York Times that the systems are gateways for consumers to engage in behavior that may be out of their norm. But a study conducted in 2016 by researchers at the University of Leicester in England found that loss rates connected to self-checkout systems came in at more than double that rate. In 2022, that shrinkage amounted to 1.6%, on average, of U.S. retailers.ĭata reported by the National Retail Federation indicates inventory loss due to shrink, a metric that tracks shoplifting as well as internal theft and administrative errors, has ballooned from just over $50 billion annually in 2018 to over $112 billion in 2022. “I hope that in California and around the country, people will continue to look for more effective strategies,” DeBerry said.Self-checkout systems used by store operators hoping to cut overhead costs may actually be leading to opposite outcomes as shoplifting rates more than double when consumers do-it-themselves, a dynamic helping fuel skyrocketing losses for U.S. Supporters of these laws hope that prison terms will keep repeat offenders off the streets.īut Cristine Soto DeBerry, executive director of the Prosecutors Alliance of California, worries the emphasis on harsher punishment is misplaced, citing research suggesting fear of getting caught is a better deterrent.įor example, a 2016 National Institute of Justice report found that the “certainty” of arrest is more likely to keep shoplifters out of stores than draconian punishments. Maryland, for example, now lets them combine multiple misdemeanor shoplifting cases into a felony.Īdvocates for harsher sentencing note that the laws are still relatively new - most were passed this year - making it too early to gauge their effectiveness. State laws are meant to empower prosecutors. A bill approved by Congress over the summer requires online platforms like Amazon to better track high-volume sellers to assist investigations into organized theft rings. Lawmakers Fight BackĬoverage of the supposed shoplifting surge inspired a slew of new laws. However, while the technology is expensive, Elverston argued RFID tags are less expensive than missing merchandise. Merchandise is locked behind a case at a Walgreens.
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