How much Compensation should I get for being Wrongly Accused of stealing a week before in Sainsbury

TripleH

I have seen plenty using self scan on autopilot mode and when it comes to payment, they tap their card and walk off without checking if payment has gone through or not. I don't believe it's theft, more a robotic response and a result of our instant society. Having a different noise to indicate payment hasn't gone through would make sense but I suspect it won't happen because someone will get upset about "everyone knowing they have payment isdues".

born_again

p00hsticks said:

born_again said:

outtatune said:

born_again said:

outtatune said:

I've never had a payment at self checkout declined, so I'd be interested to know from those of you who have exactly what company it was and what visual/audible prompt there was to let you know about it.

Of course, it could be that I have had a payment declined and it's simply not obvious when that happens with machines at my local Sainaldlidlaitrosesco.

I guess you do not use contactless then. As there is a limit before PIN has to be entered.
So declines are a normal part of purchasing @ every retailer. Terminal just comes up with declined & please enter card & pin.

You guess wrong.

Then I am really surprised you have never hit a declined contactless transaction. 

I'm not sure that requesting a Pin entry can really be considered as a transaction being 'declined' though, in the same way as e.g. using an expired card or your bank rejecting the payment though insufficient funds would be ? (Unless of course, you went on to fail to key in the correct PIN when asked).

Since this thread started, I've been waiting (unsuccessfully) to be asked to enter my pin on a contactless transaction in order to  confirm whether the card reader actually says 'declined' or simply asks you to insert your card and key in your pin before it says 'approved'.
. 
I am pretty sure that when using a self-service check-out and selecting the 'pay by card' option on the main check out screen, the screen will then tell you to 'follow the instructions on the card reader' and the next message you'd get on that screen in such as case would be 'payment accepted' regardless of whether the card reader had asked you to enter your pin or not. 

Whereas if the card used was actually invalid, as well as the 'declined' message on the card reader, you'd get a 'payment rejected, please select another method of payment' message on the main check-out screen. 

Just had this happen @ Sainsburys today on Smart Shop checkout.
Big message on screen in red saying "Contactless payment Failed" please enter card, along with a beep. If you manage to walk away from that, you are not concentrating at all.

cymruchris

born_again said:

p00hsticks said:

born_again said:

outtatune said:

born_again said:

outtatune said:

I've never had a payment at self checkout declined, so I'd be interested to know from those of you who have exactly what company it was and what visual/audible prompt there was to let you know about it.

Of course, it could be that I have had a payment declined and it's simply not obvious when that happens with machines at my local Sainaldlidlaitrosesco.

I guess you do not use contactless then. As there is a limit before PIN has to be entered.
So declines are a normal part of purchasing @ every retailer. Terminal just comes up with declined & please enter card & pin.

You guess wrong.

Then I am really surprised you have never hit a declined contactless transaction. 

I'm not sure that requesting a Pin entry can really be considered as a transaction being 'declined' though, in the same way as e.g. using an expired card or your bank rejecting the payment though insufficient funds would be ? (Unless of course, you went on to fail to key in the correct PIN when asked).

Since this thread started, I've been waiting (unsuccessfully) to be asked to enter my pin on a contactless transaction in order to  confirm whether the card reader actually says 'declined' or simply asks you to insert your card and key in your pin before it says 'approved'.
. 
I am pretty sure that when using a self-service check-out and selecting the 'pay by card' option on the main check out screen, the screen will then tell you to 'follow the instructions on the card reader' and the next message you'd get on that screen in such as case would be 'payment accepted' regardless of whether the card reader had asked you to enter your pin or not. 

Whereas if the card used was actually invalid, as well as the 'declined' message on the card reader, you'd get a 'payment rejected, please select another method of payment' message on the main check-out screen. 

Just had this happen @ Sainsburys today on Smart Shop checkout.
Big message on screen in red saying "Contactless payment Failed" please enter card, along with a beep. If you manage to walk away from that, you are not concentrating at all.

That's good to know - although having history in retail - I'm aware that not every store will have exactly the same checkout. Most retailers are continuously upgrading hardware and software on a rolling basis, and not every store will have identical equipment. There's an outside chance that the OP visited a store that was on a different hardware/software version where the message wasn't as obvious, although with the length of time these self-checkouts have now been out there, probably unlikely, and just wandered off without paying attention. (It was interesting that they said it had happened to them 5 times since - which would lead me to believe it was a card issue rather than a retailer hardware issue - but as the OP doesn't appear to be coming back, we'll never know).

p00hsticks

TripleH said:

Having a different noise to indicate payment hasn't gone through would make sense but I suspect it won't happen because someone will get upset about "everyone knowing they have payment isdues".

Given that the OP was told when they returned a week later that staff had somehow been alerted and run after them but failed to trace them, I suspect that there is some sort of visible / audible warning and the light above the checkout flashes for staff assistance as soon as shopping is removed from the checkout without a successful payment having been made.

molerat

cymruchris said:

That's good to know - although having history in retail - I'm aware that not every store will have exactly the same checkout.

My local Tesco runs 3 completely different systems at the self scan / scan as you shop checkouts, that is in just one store, and they all behave slightly differently.

iyhr

Hi,
If anyone follows this, I was paid over £200 compensation by Sainsbury.
This was because I was publicly humiliated by being accused of shop lifting in front of a shop full of people.

They had CCTV footage showing me putting in my pin number. It was a fault with their system. I have never used their self-service again but until they put in a new system, the same thing happened on the cashier tills - put in card, then pin number & screen says remove card the same as it does when payment goes through but the cashier can see it didn't go through.

cymruchris

iyhr said:

Hi,
If anyone follows this, I was paid over £200 compensation by Sainsbury.
This was because I was publicly humiliated by being accused of shop lifting in front of a shop full of people.

They had CCTV footage showing me putting in my pin number. It was a fault with their system. I have never used their self-service again but until they put in a new system, the same thing happened on the cashier tills - put in card, then pin number & screen says remove card the same as it does when payment goes through but the cashier can see it didn't go through.

A positive outcome - thanks for updating - did you ever change your card, just to rule it out as a possible cause? Or was it across more than one card? It's good they had the evidence to prove you'd completed the procedure though, as without it you'd have been stuck in a bit of a stalemate situation. Glad you've got the specific issue sorted now.