Has anyone had any problems refusing a carrier bag.

geordie_joe

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

It will change, given time ... one of our local charity shops is now charging 2p for a bag!

About 8 years ago my local KwikSave used to charge 1p for the flimsy carrier bags and 3p for the stronger ones. People, including me, used to reuse the bags. They would get the shopping home and fold up the bags and stick them in their coat pocket and reuse them next time.

Then it got taken over by Somerfield and they started giving away carrier bags for free. Now nobody reuses their carrier bags, why should they bother sticking the bags in their coat pocket after they've got their shoping home when they wil get another free one next time.

I don't think charging for carrier bags is the complete solution, but I do think it will help a lot.

rag_doll

I use my own bags & am on automatic pilot at the checkout, "I don't need a bag, I have my own, thanks". Boots cashiers sometimes ask, "Do you need a bag?" M&S are getting better, they should be the best considering their latest campaign!

Errata

Standing in the checkout queue, own shopping bags to the ready, gives me an opportunity to inwardly sneer at all those still cluttering up the planet with plastic carrier bags :rotfl:

pipple

I've had that problem, in Wilkinson stores. they ask if I want a carrier bag and I say no. They told me I could only use their carriers to carry their goods out. I left my shopping and walked out. Went over to superdrug, brought the same things and at the same price. Had no trouble when I refused the offer of a carrier and then got into a discussion about where to buy re-useable shopping bags with another lady in the queue. So thanks to Wilkinsons I probably converted someone else.

Don't know why these shops are kicking up such a fuss. Its only been since the late 80's carriers have been the norm. I remember my mother and grandparents all having a shopping bags, that they had with them everytime they went shopping.

simgranny

At my local market, many of the stalls make it almost impossible to buy fruit and veg without ending up with loads of plastic carrriers!
Customers are allowed to select the items for themselves, I hand the things over to the stallholder, who then insists on placing the apples, tomatos, or whatever in a carrier bag before weighing them. I then get handed all these seperate bags with the goods in. I can never get anywhere when I try to stop them from using the bags - they either ignore me, look at me as if I am mad, or do not understand what I am saying (some do not speak much English).
The market is closer than my local supermarket and I want to support the stallholders as it is constantly under threat of redevelopment by the likes of Wallmart but all the nearby trees are so full of their cheap blue plastic carriers that it looks like some kind of art installation!

Errata

simgranny wrote: »

At my local market, many of the stalls make it almost impossible to buy fruit and veg without ending up with loads of plastic carrriers!
Customers are allowed to select the items for themselves, I hand the things over to the stallholder, who then insists on placing the apples, tomatos, or whatever in a carrier bag before weighing them. I then get handed all these seperate bags with the goods in. I can never get anywhere when I try to stop them from using the bags - they either ignore me, look at me as if I am mad, or do not understand what I am saying (some do not speak much English).
The market is closer than my local supermarket and I want to support the stallholders as it is constantly under threat of redevelopment by the likes of Wallmart but all the nearby trees are so full of their cheap blue plastic carriers that it looks like some kind of art installation!

Totnes in Devon is a PCB free town. It has greengrocers and a market. I wonder what they do ? OS of course is tip it off the scales straight into the customers bag. Might be a bit difficult with electronic scales :rotfl:

olly300

Errata wrote: »

Totnes in Devon is a PCB free town. It has greengrocers and a market. I wonder what they do ? OS of course is tip it off the scales straight into the customers bag. Might be a bit difficult with electronic scales :rotfl:

My local market stall has electronic scales and the pans come off.

In fact they use 2 different scales - one for fruit and clean veg like tomatoes and another for potatoes, carrots, onions etc.

They did act like I was weird the first time I ask to use my own bags as it seemed only some of the little old ladies where doing it, but due to increase awareness over the past year lots of people are reusing their own carrier bags.

carbonmonoxide

I was in Sainsburys a few months back and when I declined a plastic bag the cashier told me I might as well have one as you can recycle them anyway. When I explained its better to reuse first, then recycle he looked at me as if I was mad and continued trying to put my shopping in the plastic bag he had ready. I explained that I had my own bag and he went of on a rant saying "all this global warming is a load of rubbish" and that it was just nature like when there was an ice age!!! He then said "I like it hot anyway" before moving on to the next customer.

IamJen

Oh man. I think there would've been blood pouring from my ears at that point.

My favorite is when the cashier's already bagged one or two items, but then removes them after you decline the bag, and then throws the bag AWAY. Argh argh argh.

Errata

It's hard to understand why Sainsburys checkout staff offer to pack your bags for you when they haven't a clue how to pack a bag They're very good at putting the squashable stuff in first with tins and spuds on top !