# No, you may not see my receipt. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 28, 2008, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529 "2008-09-28T02:36:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Green\_Cymbeline](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_cymbeline/32/9244_2.png) [@Green\_Cymbeline](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Cymbeline)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/41 "2008-09-28T17:16:09Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > I’d be curious to see numbers on how much shinkage the receipt checking actually prevents. If people who are stealing are smart, they’re not going to put what they stole in the bag with their other stuff. If they’re stupid, they’ll probably be caught in other ways. Exactly. Does this method really work to reduce shoplifting? I think not. Does anyone have any evidence that this is effective? Any evidence on how many shoplifters they catch with this? Until I see such evidence, I’m going to assume that this is just an example of trying to look like you’re doing something when really you’re doing nothing (and pissing off customers in the process). ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/42 "2008-09-28T17:16:18Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > I’d be curious to see numbers on how much shinkage the receipt checking actually prevents. If people who are stealing are smart, they’re not going to put what they stole in the bag with their other stuff. If they’re stupid, they’ll probably be caught in other ways. That’s kind of what I was thinking. If you’re a thief in Wal-Mart or Target or wherever, and you were clever enough to pick up some items to actually pay for, and a couple that you choose to steal, then presumably you hid the items you want to steal under your clothes/in a bag or something. You then manage to walk through the store, stand in line, take out all the legitimate purchase items at the counter, and pay for them without being caught. Then, in the store’s mind, you would be stupid enough to put the items into your bags before walking the 12.5 feet to the doors and risk a receipt check, rather than continue to keep them successfully hidden until you were out the door, at which point you could do what you wanted with them? What the hell kind of idiot would do this?!?! As for large items, like TVs, then the solution is relatively simple: force people exiting the store to go through the checkout lines or some other spot where someone can watch you. Slap a big old ugly fluorescent “PAID” sticker on all sides of the item if paid for; if you’re walking out without that sticker, then perhaps they ought to stop you and ask for a receipt, but otherwise, leave the shoppers alone. Also, and a lot of stores don’t seem to get this, don’t put high-theft items near the exits, _after the checkout lines_ in the hopes that someone will suddenly realise that they really, really wanted an mp3 player/DVD player/TV and pick it up and loop back through the checkout. Just don’t have anything between the cash register and the door, and all those items will stop disappearing. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/43 "2008-09-28T17:41:24Z")
> [@nyctea scandiaca](#): > > Exactly. Does this method really work to reduce shoplifting? I think not. Does anyone have any evidence that this is effective? Any evidence on how many shoplifters they catch with this? Until I see such evidence, I’m going to assume that this is just an example of trying to look like you’re doing something when really you’re doing nothing (and pissing off customers in the process). I’ve _heard_ that a large amount of “shrinkage”, maybe even most, is due to employees. It’s very easy to ring up someone’s (a friend’s, perhaps) goods, but not all of them. Receipt-checks would stop that. I don’t have any data though, so I don’t know how big a problem this. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/44 "2008-09-28T17:50:54Z")
> [@nyctea scandiaca](#): > > Exactly. Does this method really work to reduce shoplifting? I think not. Does anyone have any evidence that this is effective? Any evidence on how many shoplifters they catch with this? Until I see such evidence, I’m going to assume that this is just an example of trying to look like you’re doing something when really you’re doing nothing (and pissing off customers in the process). You should go to a site like customers suck and ask how often a shoplifter gets caught doing this. The site is largely people in retail that can tell you. I’m sure they will be happy to tell you how often somebody is caught by the alarm, not that they don’t save even more by people that go to a non alarmed store to steal. I’ve seen people loaded down with booty stopped at the door beeper alarm. The worst was a family that bought a cart of groceries. There were packages of steaks, booze and other expensive stuff under their coats. They didn’t stop right away either. There was a big scene so everybody at checkouts saw what they had. > **[Sucky Customers - Customers Suck!](https://www.customerssuck.com/board/forum/the-heart-of-the-site/sucky-customers?f=7)** > > You know the drill This should educate you real well how much people try to scam and steal. Read the one titled “wherein a customer tries to buy a 30 lb empty tote” for a start. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/45 "2008-09-28T18:03:30Z")
What it comes down to is this (Now With 30% More Hyperbole!): STORES: All customers are suspected shoplifters. It is up to the customer to prove he isn’t. Shoplifting costs us money. CUSTOMER: A major precept in this country is that ‘All people are presumed to be innocent unless proven guilty’. I object to, and am offended by, the implication that I am a criminal. Stores should control shoplifting without accusing everyone of being a criminal. Both points are valid. And yes, I have said ‘No, thank you’ when asked for my receipt. (If you go to Frye’s, you’d better show your receipt. Chances are you’ll have to return that previously-returned-as-defective-and-then-restocked item you just bought, and you need the mark on your receipt.) But consider this: If you fly commercially, you are (in effect) being accused of being a terrorist and you have to prove you’re not every time you go through security. I hate having to remove my shoes and belt when I go through security, but I acknowledge that security checkpoints are necessary in airports. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/46 "2008-09-28T18:10:15Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > What it comes down to is this (Now With 30% More Hyperbole!): > > STORES: All customers are suspected shoplifters. It is up to the customer to prove he isn’t. Shoplifting costs us money. > > CUSTOMER: A major precept in this country is that ‘All people are presumed to be innocent unless proven guilty’. I object to, and am offended by, the implication that I am a criminal. Stores should control shoplifting without accusing everyone of being a criminal. I see it as simpler than that. Store: Our store, our rules. Customer: Okay. Stores have no obligation to be as accepting as the government. They don’t need to give you free speech, free assembly, free press, the right to bear arms, etc. ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/47 "2008-09-28T18:15:26Z")
> [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](#): > > I wondered that myself as I stood there trapped since they were scuffling in front of the only exit to the building and I didn’t want to get hit. > > At that time, I really hoped he would and was successful because of the emotional distress it caused _me_. > \*\*\*No, you’re right. He was, in effect, stealing the stuff, so I’m not siding with him there. > > What happened was that he put his stuff on the counter and the checker didn’t scan one of the items, so when he got to the door, the receipt didn’t match the items and that’s where the incident began.\*\*\* > > I guess what distressed me the most was the scene of how they literally dragged him (his shirt flew over his head and his body was exposed) to the back room. And when I heard him scream, that seemed pretty scary. It seemed pretty excessive to me. > > I thought they could have taken down his license plate number and called the police or something, but the police weren’t even there yet. Having worked retail security, I can tell you that this tactic is quite frequently used by shoplifters who get one of their own on the “inside.” I’m not saying that that is what happened in the case you describe, but I know for certain it is exactly what the security guys in that situation were thinking. Why do you think there are security cameras directly over the checkout counters of the larger retailers? Why security can call up and monitor any register at any time? And as for “taking down a license plate number” or “waiting for police?” HA! If you want to find a cup of coffee and a donut, call a cop. If you want to stop crime, defend the weak, and uphold Justice? Good luck. Let me know what you find. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/48 "2008-09-28T18:34:24Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > I see it as simpler than that. > > Store: Our store, our rules. > > Customer: Okay. First of all, the rules aren’t made “clear” (more on that in a sec) until after you’ve purchased the goods and attempt to exit the store. These “rules” also aren’t consistently enforced, as in my Target example. And finally, Target’s “rule” was to _ask_ me if they could see my receipt, not demand it. And as such, I declined their _request_ and continued on my merry way. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/49 "2008-09-28T18:38:14Z")
> [@Red\_Barchetta](#): > > First of all, the rules aren’t made “clear” (more on that in a sec) until after you’ve purchased the goods and attempt to exit the store. These “rules” also aren’t consistently enforced, as in my Target example. And finally, Target’s “rule” was to _ask_ me if they could see my receipt, not demand it. And as such, I declined their _request_ and continued on my merry way. And if they had demanded it? Now that you know that they can request it, now that you know exactly what their rules are (no matter how inconsistently enforced), are you going to stop shopping there? ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/50 "2008-09-28T18:43:21Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > And if they had demanded it? > > Now that you know that they can request it, now that you know exactly what their rules are (no matter how inconsistently enforced), are you going to stop shopping there? No. I may shop there less, as a result, but until they ban me from the store, I’ll continue to skirt their receipt-checking process. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/51 "2008-09-28T19:10:31Z")
I searched for the Frys incident but couldn’t find it. OTOH, here’s a cop tasing a woman at Best Buy…video too! [http://www.wkrg.com/local/article/yoga\_instructor\_tasered\_by\_female\_cop/8323/](http://www.wkrg.com/local/article/yoga_instructor_tasered_by_female_cop/8323/) They thought she was using a stolen credit card…oops, it _was_ hers! ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/52 "2008-09-28T19:31:04Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > And if they had demanded it? By “demand” are you suggesting that the store has some right to enforce it’s edict at the moment? Yes, they can decline your return to the store, but that is not enforcing their “rule” to examine a receipt or other package. Until then it’s just a request (no matter how they word it), one that you are free to decline to comply with. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/53 "2008-09-28T19:34:46Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > By “demand” are you suggesting that the store has some right to enforce it’s edict at the moment? I used the term the person I was replying to used. That person said it was a request, not a demand, which led me to think they thought there was a difference. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/54 "2008-09-28T20:17:46Z")
> [@Ruken](#): > > I’ve _heard_ that a large amount of “shrinkage”, maybe even most, is due to employees. It’s very easy to ring up someone’s (a friend’s, perhaps) goods, but not all of them. Receipt-checks would stop that. I don’t have any data though, so I don’t know how big a problem this. It’s a huge business. This isn’t the whole article, but The New Yorker did an article on shrinkage and the big business that employee stealing has become. There is also now e-fencing, which acts as a massive clearing house for the stuff. [targetiswatchingyou](http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/09/01/080901fa_fact_colapinto) > [@](#): > > By far the biggest theft problem faced by retailers, however, is employee theft, which accounts for nearly 47% of profit erosion Very illuminating article. I think being asked to have your receipt checked is a PITA, but I can see the stores’ POV as well. I try to be nice about it, but to be honest, it was one of the reasons I stopped shopping at Sam’s Club. ---
**Author:** ![Jodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@Jodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jodi)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/55 "2008-09-28T21:11:04Z")
> [@Red\_Barchetta](#): > > No. I may shop there less, as a result, but until they ban me from the store, I’ll continue to skirt their receipt-checking process. You’re on notice of their practice; you don’t have to shop there; but you will continue to shop there and defy them to stop you, until they actually _do_ stop you, and then, no doubt, you’ll be pissed off about that. If I felt strongly about the “show your receipt/prove you haven’t stolen this stuff” process, I could see refusing to comply the first time, when I was unaware that was their process. But I wouldn’t continue to shop there if that mindset or process offended me. They are entitled to set the rules of their own establishment, and I certainly don’t see how you strike a blow for Personal Freedom or The American Way by being a pain in the ass to employees who don’t set the rules but are required to follow them. You have no inalienable right to shop at Target. If you don’t like how they do business, shop elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/56 "2008-09-28T22:41:04Z")
> [@Jodi](#): > > You have no inalienable right to shop at Target. If you don’t like how they do business, shop elsewhere. I have qualms with many stores; were I to stop shopping at all of them for such, I wouldn’t be able to buy any goods. And I do think I’m sending a stronger message by simply ignoring their request to see my receipt. Were I to simply stop shopping, they undoubtably wouldn’t notice my loss of the $50 or so I spend a month there, if that. Not that I believe my actions are of any great meaning or anything, but it says more than my simply cease shopping there. It conveys the message that I won’t deal with their bullshit policy (at which no time I agreed to) to check my receipt, which they have no legal right to demand (they can ask, but I don’t have to concede). ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/57 "2008-09-28T22:48:37Z")
How I se it: the store buys merchandise, and put it on the shelf for sale. Customers pick the desired merchandise from the shelf, and proceed to the check-out. At the check-out, their items are tallied, legal tender and other forms of acceptable payment is exchanged for the merchandise, and a receipt, as proof-of-purchase for the merchandise, is issued. The customers take their new merchandise, and proceed to exit the store. Until they leave the premises, the store, as original owners of the merchandise the customer is clearly attempting to carry off the premises, is fully entitled to see a valid proof-of-purchase. If they care about repeat business, they will ask politely. Every time I have been asked by any store to see my receipt, they have always been polite about it. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/58 "2008-09-28T22:51:01Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > How I se it: > Until they leave the premises, the store, as original owners of the merchandise the customer is clearly attempting to carry off the premises, is fully entitled to see a valid proof-of-purchase. Well, how you see it isn’t how it is, legally. Once I’ve paid for the goods, they have become mine. At that point, no one reserves the right to search my belongings unless they have a damn good, legally defensible, reason to. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/59 "2008-09-28T23:04:39Z")
> [@Red\_Barchetta](#): > > Well, how you see it isn’t how it is, legally. Once I’ve paid for the goods, they have become mine. At that point, no one reserves the right to search my belongings unless they have a damn good, legally defensible, reason to. It isn’t a case where they _know_ you have paid for it and want to hassle you. It’s a case where _they don’t know_ if you’ve paid for it and want to find out if you have. You’re assuming that they can know, psychically or something, that you’re not stealing. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529/60 "2008-09-28T23:07:17Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > It isn’t a case where they _know_ you have paid for it and want to hassle you. It’s a case where _they don’t know_ if you’ve paid for it and want to find out if you have. You’re assuming that they can know, psychically or something, that you’re not stealing. Where did I assume such? Frankly, I don’t care how else they deal with it, but there are numerous other options. Undercover security, video cameras, actually seeing me steal said item. Again though, not my problem. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-you-may-not-see-my-receipt/465529.md?page=4)