Vent:Store staff told me they would search me

MrandMrsB

chocolate_buttons wrote: »

how awful :eek:

whatever happened to innocent until proved guilty?!

Obviously since I had not stolen anything I removed the items that I had just bought, but she told me not to bother because they wanted me to remove the "other item". It all happened in seconds while my hubby popped back to the car!

OP, Mr B tells me that they definitely did not have the right to search you and can only call the police if they have good reason to believe that you stole something. Don't worry about it! Poor you having a migraine - since I am sensitive to light I suffered with them from childhood until I started wearing my wonderful Migralenses.......have not had one since....magic!

If you ever have to return to the shop, maybe you could make a joke about it?

hollydays

powerful_Rogue wrote: »

The alarm system shops use is just an indicator. If it goes off when someone is leaving it gives the staff or security an indication that a theft may have occured.

They can ask you for a search and you are able to decline. This however can give them further grounds to suspect an offence has been commited and can use reasonable force to detain you until a police officer attends.

absolute tosh

hollydays

Storck wrote: »

Could be a number of things setting it off? Pacemaker, pins in bones, injected birth control etc etc etc.

Also if you walk right in the middle of the sensors there is less chance of the alarm going off due to them been placed too far apart.

Even more tosh,why would pins in bones and injected birth control set off a system,do you understand how these systems work?

hollydays

DCFC79 wrote: »

nothing wrong with store staff or security staff searching you, members of staff of the supermarkets get randomly searched albeit the staff areasked to empty they're pockets with management and sometimes security there, the easy option for a customer is to empty your pockets so you can get what you wanted

Yes,but not when they enter work..plus they have agreed to this in their contract before they joined the company,so they have a choice.

Dave101t

the thing to set off the alarm will be in the bags so....go through without the bags!

NoSatisfaction

go_cat wrote: »

They have absolutely no right of search - the only people that have that are the Police

They can ask to look in your bags but you are allowed ro refuse this request

It doean't make sense for them to notice you set the alarms off going in then threaten to search you on the way out :rotfl:

Furthermore if they try its assault, if they detain you it really serious false imprisonment and they can do time for it.

marywooyeah

hollydays wrote: »

look at PACE,police and criminal evidence act

PACE 1984 deals with police powers (alongside the Codes of Practice) and either s74 or 76 (can't remember off the top of my head) governs the power of Police to stop and search, but it won't cover any shop staff, only Police.
Like others have said OP, they can ask to search your bags but can't physically force you, you'd have to give consent.
As the alarm went off on the way into the shop it is indeed unusual and their "threat" does appear onerous, possibly you had bought something from another shop which had the tags still on and set the alarm off, I've know library books to set them off too.
If I were you I'd complain to the manager/head office reccomending that the staff be educated in the boundaries of their positions.

hollydays

Dave101t wrote: »

the thing to set off the alarm will be in the bags so....go through without the bags!

Finally,common sense.

NoSatisfaction

MrandMrsB wrote: »

When alarms go off I turn bright red and look guilty even though I am definitely not a shoplifter! There is one particular shop where they regularly forget to remove security tags, and when the alarm goes off staff immediately rush to the door to surround their unfortunate victim who has no choice but to cooperate. They then assume the poor person is guilty and are pretty aggressive. I am not shopping there again - it's too embarrassing......

Walk on. If they try to stop you, use reasonable force to resist.

Call the police, demand they are prosecuted for assault.

These shop keeps and their jumped up security guards think they have so many powers when in fact they don't, but they do use intimidation and fear!

blossomhill_2

hollydays wrote: »

Finally,common sense.

What bags?

Seriously though I could have posted the whole story by now but it has been amazing to see the assumptions posters have made, all in the interests of being helpful mind you. I don't think many people would know their rights if it happened to them, I didnt, that why I asked my question so I'd know next time