Check the checkout scales are on zero
glider3560
Forumite 4.1K Posts
I was in Asda today using the self service checkout. I had two small thin chillies in a bag so expected them to cost about 3p.
They came in at 55g and cost 23p. As I lifted them off the scales, I noticed the weight was 50g with nothing on there. Pressed the zero button on the scales and weighed them again: 5g and 2p.
Had a real bother getting the assistant to understand what happened and remove the 23p line.
So, it was only 21p extra, but I had seven items to weigh, so it would've been quite a bit more.
Lesson to learn: zero the scales before using if they aren't already on zero!
They came in at 55g and cost 23p. As I lifted them off the scales, I noticed the weight was 50g with nothing on there. Pressed the zero button on the scales and weighed them again: 5g and 2p.
Had a real bother getting the assistant to understand what happened and remove the 23p line.
So, it was only 21p extra, but I had seven items to weigh, so it would've been quite a bit more.
Lesson to learn: zero the scales before using if they aren't already on zero!
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Good advice but if you tried to bag the items it would have probably recognised that you were 50g short and flagged up a message telling you to place the item in the bagging area.
This would have happened for each of your 7 items so it would have been easy to spot
What you need to be careful of is that it doesn't happen on a manned till
No, that wouldn't do it.
If you have something weighing 50g on the scale and you reboot the machine the scales get zeroed. Then when you take the item off the scale it goes down to minus 50g, not up to plus 50g.
How would it know how much 2 chillies, or any other lose fruit and veg are supposed to weigh?
You know what I meant. It was late.
At a self-checkout when you scan something the machine knows the weight, which is how they stop things from being stolen. If you scanned a box of cereal and put a chicken in the bagging area, it would tell you there was an unexpected item in the bagging area. Whereas if you scanned these chillies (I'm assuming the barcode sticker would let the machine know what weight they were when you put them on the scales) and put them in the bagging area, the machine would still expect more because they weighed so much less.
These were loose chillies, sold by weight. The machine had no way of knowing how many chillies were on the scales, or how much they should weigh. Which is why it charged 23p instead of 2p.
Yes, but that is pre-packed stuff of a known weight.
The chillies could not have been pre-packed, because if they had been the machine would have known the weight and known that the item on the scale was the wrong weight, and it would have said so on the screen not just charge a higher price.
They were loose chillies, I've never known a supermarket put barcode stickers on loose chillies. And even if they did, the machine would have spotted the weight difference and did as you said above, not just charge for more chillies.
It was early when I posted, so that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it
of course it knows how much it should weight.
if the scale weights it at 50g, then the bagging area will expect 50g
but as the scale is out, and you only put 5g into the baggage area, it will flag up an error
7.15am is not early. I have already been at work an hour and fifteen minutes at that time.