# Is this a violation of the spirit of the supermarket express lane? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 1, 2009, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984 "2009-11-01T22:29:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/21 "2009-11-04T06:28:17Z")
I got a shiny new checking account just about a year ago, as in, I got it about 50 weeks ago. I have written 10 or 11 checks on that account, and a couple of them got scanned and then returned to me, as the transaction was done as an EFT. I use my debit card a lot, and of course I do a lot of online banking, too. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/22 "2009-11-04T12:03:34Z")
> [@kushiel](#): > > Is paying by cheque still really common in the US? The only people around here (Western Canada) who use cheques at retail stores are old people, and that’s very occasionally because most places don’t accept them. Hell, the only reason many young people have cheques is because they are still standard for apartment rentals. Really? Can you pay income taxes online? Driver’s licences in Quebec can be paid only at a couple banks, by no means all and not, so far as I know, online. Many US companies will not accept a Canadian credit/debit card (even on a US bank) because you cannot supply a valid zip code. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/23 "2009-11-04T13:44:05Z")
At my local market the two lines usually open are the express lane and the W.I.C. lane. Last night they had 4 lanes open, supremo, so I took the first one. And was greeted by the most talkative curious nosey cashier I have ever met Chatty Cathy- Wow this is a lot of food, do you have a big family? Me looking at my half filled cart in puzzlement - Er no CC - you have a lot of stuff here… Me- just empty cupboards at home CC - they must really be empty… Me - frowning at her, I then put my milk on the lower basket of the cart CC- Do you have a bad back Me- thinking to myself how does she know my back hurts today - Er No, why do you ask CC - Well I had another customer and it looked she had a bad back so I felt bad and asked if she needed help and she said no, but I felt bad for her… CC holds up aubergine- what is this? Me - eggplant CC- what are these? Me- capers CC - Your family likes to eat that? CC - ooh icecream some is lucky in your house :rolleyes: This store is in a depressed little town, but they are family owned and have done a lot of work to make it a clean well stocked well priced grocery store. Still i wonder in what turnip field do they find these employees? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/24 "2009-11-04T17:39:32Z")
When I first read the thread title, I was prepared to answer “yes.” Having read the OP, though, I’m not so sure. If the two people had had separate carts, it wouldn’t have been a violation. That having been said, though, I think 20 items is too high a threshold for a Wal-mart express lane. Enough people buy fewer than 20 items that there’s nothing particularly express or special about it. The express lane ought to enable me to dash into the store, grab one or two things I need, and get out quickly, without having a substantial delay at the checkout. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/25 "2009-11-04T18:06:01Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > That having been said, though, I think 20 items is too high a threshold for a Wal-mart express lane. Enough people buy fewer than 20 items that there’s nothing particularly express or special about it. The express lane ought to enable me to dash into the store, grab one or two things I need, and get out quickly, without having a substantial delay at the checkout. Yep. It should be more like a 5-item line. That’s one of Wal-Mart’s greatest operational weaknesses … that you can’t get in and get out with a few items (at least not around here). That makes the quick trips to the local stores much more worthwhile than they’d normally be. ---
**Author:** ![Epimetheus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c4cdca/32.png) [@Epimetheus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Epimetheus)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/26 "2009-11-04T18:09:43Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Filled out? Most of the check machines around here print everything but your signature on the check, so it’d be pointless to fill it out further than that. They don’t do that at any place I’ve ever shopped. Not even Walmart, at least from my observation of said check writer. As for check writing. We have a checking account that gets interest (some “Green” checking program) which only allows us 5 free checks written a month. We never hit 5 in a month. ---
**Author:** ![Epimetheus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c4cdca/32.png) [@Epimetheus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Epimetheus)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/27 "2009-11-04T18:13:12Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > Really? Can you pay income taxes online? Driver’s licences in Quebec can be paid only at a couple banks, by no means all and not, so far as I know, online. Many US companies will not accept a Canadian credit/debit card (even on a US bank) because you cannot supply a valid zip code. Oh yes, paying something once a year, or once every 4 years is exactly like paying for your groceries with a check. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/28 "2009-11-04T18:22:50Z")
> [@kushiel](#): > > Is paying by cheque still really common in the US? Nope. Some people, however, pay by check. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/29 "2009-11-04T19:06:39Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > Really? Can you pay income taxes online? Driver’s licences in Quebec can be paid only at a couple banks, by no means all and not, so far as I know, online. I pay my driver’s licence online (and my income taxes as well, when I have to pay them). ---
**Author:** ![BKReporter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@BKReporter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BKReporter)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/30 "2009-11-04T19:10:40Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > When I first read the thread title, I was prepared to answer “yes.” Having read the OP, though, I’m not so sure. If the two people had had separate carts, it wouldn’t have been a violation. > > That having been said, though, I think 20 items is too high a threshold for a Wal-mart express lane. Enough people buy fewer than 20 items that there’s nothing particularly express or special about it. The express lane ought to enable me to dash into the store, grab one or two things I need, and get out quickly, without having a substantial delay at the checkout. That’s probably my biggest pet peeve about Wal-Mart. A lot of times I only need to buy one or two things, but I still have to wait behind a half-dozen people at the Express lane. In that vein, another pet peeve is that they never seem to have too many of their registers open. What’s the point of having 30 registers, if you’re only ever going to have 10 open? ---
**Author:** ![Epimetheus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c4cdca/32.png) [@Epimetheus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Epimetheus)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/31 "2009-11-04T19:16:00Z")
The funny thing is, they spend billions getting the self-checkout system installed and running, and now I don’t see any Wal-marts using them. (my BIL actually is one of the computer guys on the team that was in charge of it) ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/32 "2009-11-04T20:11:19Z")
> [@kushiel](#): > > Is paying by cheque still really common in the US? The only people around here (Western Canada) who use cheques at retail stores are old people, and that’s very occasionally because most places don’t accept them. Hell, the only reason many young people have cheques is because they are still standard for apartment rentals. For some reason, most U.S. grocery store chains didn’t even _accept_ credit cards until about 12-15 years ago. At least, this was true in the Eastern part of the country. (If I had time to rummage through my old checkbook stubs, I’d be able to identify the year when all of a sudden, I stopped writing dozens of checks to grocery stores each year.) But a lot of people, especially older people, still pay for their groceries by check. Habit, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/33 "2009-11-04T20:13:41Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > That wouldn’t annoy me as much as the single person who wants to split up their purchase into two or more transactions. Yeah, I get why they want to do that sometimes, but I was misled! There was only one person in front of me! Why DO they do that? ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/34 "2009-11-04T20:20:30Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Why DO they do that? I have done it before when purchasing things for work that had to be on a separate receipt. Is this a violation of the express lane - if it is 12 items maximum, if I have 10 separate items and 4 12-packs of soda? The soda (apart from one) stays under the cart, and the cashier just swipes the one 4 times, or hits a button on the register to indicate 4 items. ---
**Author:** ![CutterJohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/91b2a8/32.png) [@CutterJohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CutterJohn)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/35 "2009-11-04T20:36:11Z")
> [@MsRobyn](#): > > I didn’t count the number of items each individual bought. > > It just seems, I don’t know, dishonest because if it were two buyers and two carts, the amount of time spent sorting out which person belongs to what items is minimal. As it was, there were a few minutes spent where both people discussed items neither one remembered putting in the cart. My roomate and I do this on occasion, and it is trivially easy to separate. The only time its not, is when we have a ton of items, in which case we go to the normal checkout. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/36 "2009-11-04T21:25:56Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > Walmart has 20-items-or-fewer lanes. They also ignore their own rules since I’ve seen violators every time I go there. The clerks don’t care and very few of the customers complain. I’m guessing the cashiers **care** –they just aren’t allowed to \*\*do \*\*anything about it. That’s how it was when I was a supermarket cashier, anyway. > [@Epimetheus](#): > > The funny thing is, they spend billions getting the self-checkout system installed and running, and now I don’t see any Wal-marts using them. My dad lives in Urbana, IL, and the one by him has it, and I’ve used it. The main problem is that the self-checkout is in kind of an out-of-the-way place versus where the cashier-checkout is located, so when you’re on your way out the door, it’s easier to just queue up. > [@kushiel](#): > > Is paying by cheque still really common in the US? Two things I pay by check: my rent and one of my utility bills. The rent, because I don’t want to set up an automatic monthly payment, and that utility bill because they charge you money to pay it online and I’m not mailing my CC info anywhere. FWIW, when I was a grocery-store cashier, people would often write checks so that they could make it out for over the amount and get cash back. Can’t do that with a credit card. Checks can also make it easier to keep track of your balance (especially if you get ones with built-in carbon copies), and you can sometimes count on a check being deposited later than a debit or credit card payment would go through or put a hold on your money. > [@villa](#): > > Is this a violation of the express lane - if it is 12 items maximum, if I have 10 separate items and 4 12-packs of soda? The soda (apart from one) stays under the cart, and the cashier just swipes the one 4 times, or hits a button on the register to indicate 4 items. Not really, because it’s obviously something that can be scanned off one item and it doesn’t need to be bagged. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2009, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/37 "2009-11-05T00:05:12Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Why DO they do that? I do it sometimes. As \*\*villa \*\*said, I do it when I’m buying stuff for work that needs a separate receipt so I can get reimbursed. I’ve had supermarket clerks shoo away people from the express lane who have full carts, but if they’re over by a few items, it’s no big deal. I shop at Food Lion most of the time, and the clerks make no bones about making someone with what is clearly more than 12 items go to the regular lane. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2009, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/38 "2009-11-05T01:21:01Z")
What about a parent and child, can they technically get away with 2x the amount by having the child have a order? Would it be needed to have them as 2 separate orders, since that would take more time? ---
**Author:** ![kushiel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bbce88/32.png) [@kushiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kushiel)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2009, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/39 "2009-11-05T01:58:08Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > Really? Can you pay income taxes online? Driver’s licences in Quebec can be paid only at a couple banks, by no means all and not, so far as I know, online. Many US companies will not accept a Canadian credit/debit card (even on a US bank) because you cannot supply a valid zip code. I checked Revenue Canada’s site - my bank is one of the ones that supports paying taxes online. And even if I wasn’t at a participating bank, I could go to a bank and pay it there. TBH, I’m a newish grad, so with my tax breaks I haven’t had to pay any income tax yet. Driver’s licenses in Saskatchewan can be paid by cash, cheque, credit card or debit card at any SGI location. You got me on the third one though. I’ve never tried to order from a US company that wouldn’t accept my money. I guess I could use a cheque then. > [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > FWIW, when I was a grocery-store cashier, people would often write checks so that they could make it out for over the amount and get cash back. Can’t do that with a credit card. Checks can also make it easier to keep track of your balance (especially if you get ones with built-in carbon copies), and you can sometimes count on a check being deposited later than a debit or credit card payment would go through or put a hold on your money. Ah, here you’d usually just ask when the transaction starts if you could get cash back, and the cashier would just add the amount on. That’s not something that I’ve seen often though, ATMs are everywhere. ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2009, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984/40 "2009-11-05T03:12:51Z")
> [@BKReporter](#): > > That’s probably my biggest pet peeve about Wal-Mart. A lot of times I only need to buy one or two things, but I still have to wait behind a half-dozen people at the Express lane. Yeah, there’s nothing express about 20 items. This is no doubt Walmart’s threshold because it allows them the _appearance_ of caring about the customer experience (“we have four express lanes open at all times for your convenience!”) while actually not providing the convenience at all. (And encouraging people to buy more, because they can have more items and still check out “expressly.”) > [@](#): > > In that vein, another pet peeve is that they never seem to have too many of their registers open. What’s the point of having 30 registers, if you’re only ever going to have 10 open? In the next few weeks, you’ll see that they’ll have more registers staffed for more hours of the day, for the holiday, oh, no, wait, excuse me, the _Christmas_ season. January 2, it’ll be back down to usual levels until the two weeks or so before school starts in your area next fall. They have this stuff down to a scary science. > [@Epimetheus](#): > > The funny thing is, they spend billions getting the self-checkout system installed and running, and now I don’t see any Wal-marts using them. (my BIL actually is one of the computer guys on the team that was in charge of it) None of the stores in my area that had them installed still have them, the most recently built stores never had them to begin with. I spend way too much time and money shopping at (expletive deleted) Walmart. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-violation-of-the-spirit-of-the-supermarket-express-lane/515984.md?page=3)