[Closed] Eating / drinking things in a supermarket, before you've paid for them.

Basically shoplifting!!!

Is it really an issue if they pay for it?

ive had a drink before i finished shopping.. as long as you pay for it why not?

chav characteristic #43

until it's paid for it belongs to the shop. If the're bothered security can sort it. When people leave their trollys behind and walk off, if I see something I need in it, I'll pick it out.

(well TBH, I [i]imagine[/i] being MTF enough to do that)

I've seen it frequently used by mothers with trolley bound children who'd otherwise be causing trouble. Packet of crisps and put the empty packet through the checkout to pay for it. Everyone's a winner, including the fat, spoilt child.

My Dad used to do it when we were wee. Just grapes and raisins and stuff cause we liked them and it was fun.

As long as you hand the packet over for scanning it should be fine.

People have done it with energy bars in the shop in the past - as long as they wave over that they are doing it then it's all cool.

Plus - you have to sample the goods...

When people leave their trollys behind and walk off, if I see something I need in it, I'll pick it out.

I put the most expensive item in reach in their unattended trolley, its easier to say you have made a mistake!!

Always used to do it when I went shopping with my ma and pa. A bag of no nonsense beef monster munch. Different times then though.

I do it on my lunch break, saves a couple of quid a day for bike parts.

I put the most expensive item in reach in their unattended trolley, its easier to say you have made a mistake!!

I used to work with a girl who'd put alphabet spaghetti and nappies in your trolley. She was like a ninja - you never saw her but would often arrive at the checkout with this extra stuff 😆

(no, I wasn't observant enough to notice them before the checkout)

my pet hate as i work in store,there all at it,chicken nuggets for all kids,sausage rolls,usual type,if i catch them disposing of packaging,i put it on the checkout belt as they are checking out,get so much satisfaction out of it!!!!!

Its fun to put stuff in unattended trolleys,then watch as they get to the checkout and start arguing why they bought that, especially if you put condoms or Annusol in the trolley.

MMM eating grapes then will be theft! since you buy those as weight and not in a packet!!!!!!
FFS just wait until you get to the till.

its theft?? it hasnt left the shop 🙂

Whoop whoop, dis is da sound of da (STW morality) Police!

When I was at school I worked in a supermarket. Saw a teenager pop a packet of tobacco up his jersey. (yes back in the days when it wasn't behind the counter). Charged his mother for it, who noticed and questioned it. Sooooooo snapped !

But yes definitely a class indicator. Only extremely posh or extremely chavvy people do it. Manners are so middle class.

what I do, which I imagine is quite annoying, is snap the really long stems off the broccolli that I won't eat and throw them back in the crate

It's just out of order, don't see why people can't wait an hour before scoffing their faces, it's the shop's property at that point so IMO theft and probably so in the eyes of the law.

i often drink from a bottle of bucky as i wander around looking for the pot noodle aisle

Boiled eggs from the salad bar at morrisons take some scanning from in yer belly. 😯

agree, I used to think that this was the mark of the terminally lacking in self-discipline. then mini-plums came along and realised that 18 month olds fit quite neatly into this category. still give the Mrs stick about it though.........

I do it, normally after a ride on my way home, so judge me pompous fools, and no, I'm not a Chav! (or fat or spoilt)

Is it wrong to put the petrol in your car before paying then?

It is just wrong filling your face with stuff before youve even paid for it. Its just uncouth and chavy. But....I am afraid I'm guilty by association to my Girlfreind. She was feeling a bit fait and I'll in Asda one trip and so she cracked open a bottle of water we hadnt yet paid for. I figured it was semi-acceptable as she looked quite ill, but can it ever be so? I dont know....but there's no flipping excuse for filling you face with cake and crisps.

I have done it several times and will do it again. Not illegal in France. And I can't see why it bothers people. As long as you pay for it.
I use to be known as the headless bread man at waitrose back in the day. I can't (that is being french probably) get a baguette and not have a chunk of the head of it. So I always was getting to the till with always having the head of the bread missing.

I always eat the food in restaurants before I've paid for it.... Is this wrong??

I never see this. I shop in Waitrose though.

Can't see the problem as long as you pay for it.

our kids liked the lemon and raisin pancakes to munch on while we shopped.

I always eat the food in restaurants before I've paid for it.... Is this wrong??

SUPERMARKETS DO NOT WORK THIS WAY.

^^
Yes, capitals. Controversial, eh?

It's some of my roadie mates that eat their own food at the cafe stop that
rattles my cage.

Oh dear 🙄

I didn't realise this was acceptable. Cool. i can't wait for my next visit to the supermarket so I can pre-fit a condom and leave a nice smear of KY in that special place.

Don't worry, I'll let them scan the the packets.

Is it wrong to put the petrol in your car before paying then?

You're not using the petrol at that point though. Filling you tank is the supermarket equivalent of putting things in your trolley. Not the same thing at all, as it's usually not possible to pay for petrol in advance.

If you eat stuff in Supermarkets before you've paid for it, you're a pair of slippers away from shopping in your dressing gown. You ASDA scum 😉

snap the stalks of the brocoli before you bag it to get extra value for money.
open the finest/extra special/taste the difference pre packed fruit and put it in a loose fruit bag, so you don't have to buy in multiples of 4 or 6

bakes - Member
what I do, which I imagine is quite annoying, is snap the really long stems off the broccolli that I won't eat and throw them back in the crate

ballsofcottonwool - Member
snap the stalks of the brocoli before you bag it to get extra value for money.

You foooools! Broccoli stalks bring tasty, nutritious and useful added-bulk to many dishes. I think of them as 'vegan offal'*: undesirable bits that are nonetheless eminently usable. You're missing out by discarding them.

(* credit where credit's due for this phrase, you know who you are 😉 )

Broccoli stalks give good farts. I snap the woody bits off asparagus, because Jamie Oliver told me too.

I have no problem with it or with people leaving their trolleys unattended for a few minutes.
Why someone would care one way or another or go as far as ascribing this behaviour to "chavs" is a little sad.

Not acceptable adult behaviour. When my daughter was 3 or 4, she loved to sit in the trolley and eat a baguette as we went round and would eat about half of it before we got to the checkout. No one seemed to mind. And I'm very middle class...

I think some folk are too bothered by what other folk are doing - even when it has no effect on them whatsoever.

If you put your shopping on the belt one item at a time, in the middle, with room all round it, it still gets scanned at the same speed, but people get really funny about it 😉

supermarkets are full of wierd monkeys

I found that when paying with a money off voucher, gift vouchers and credit card, all for the same transaction that the people behind me were really pi$$ed off!

Try putting your shopping on the belt without using one of those bar things and time to see how long it takes the person with the shopping in front of you to panic and squeeze the bar inbetween through fear of having to pay for your goods aswell. 15 seconds is a good score

how about self checkouts. Tesco's finest fillet steaks, or ducks breast, weighed as potatoes. 42p each, spankyou Tesco, spankyou very much 😛

Tesco's finest fillet steaks, or ducks breast, weighed as potatoes. 42p each, spankyou Tesco, spankyou very much

now, that is theft. You're no better than someone who hides something down their trousers and walks out of the shop.

I frequently leave my trolley if I need to go back and get something ive forgotten. Is anybody [i]seriously[/i] bothered about that?
chill out, you'll shorten your own life getting that stressed, no-one elses.

On occasion, if im really hungry I might even nibble on something I haven't yet paid for. IIRC there has to be intent to deprive someone of their property for it to be theft.

how about self checkouts. Tesco's finest fillet steaks, or ducks breast, weighed as potatoes. 42p each, spankyou Tesco, spankyou very much

does that work in Asda? purely hypothetically speaking...

I find grabbing a packet of Babybel's when entering the supermarket keeps the offspring unwrapping and chomping things for a while. I pay for them when i get to the checkout. What on earths the problem with that?

BTW: Tim. Could you post up the answer to that question? Should you, purely hypothetically, discover it. Ahem....

Seems to be a trend that's crept in over the last 10-15 years. Really annoys me for some reason. Quite often see discarded wrappers or bottles on shelves in my local Sainsbury's where people have eaten or drunk something and not paid for it, which is even more irritating.

I'm a 30 year old Yorkshire man & very old fashioned in all aspects of life including my views on telling the wife shopping is her job.once I picked myself up off the floor I took my 2 & 5 year old to do the BIG shop.I let my kids sit in the trolley & eat a punet of strawberries 2 for 1 deal.I don't have a problem with it as I get well behaved children for an hour.I'm sure the ones above would rather not have a lot of kids screaming the place down as kids' and supermarkets don't mix.

Somehow it erks me too, I'm not sure why. Possibly because I don't trust people to pay for it at the end. But I've done it myself when I was a kid and when I was particularly shattered after a ride, to the point of feeling dizzy - when I went to the checkout I was given a really dodgy stare by the checkout woman.

>I'm not sure why

Possibly because - in addition to all the other reasons mentioned - it's simply ****ing ill-mannered.

Many years back on a trip to the states a few of us were in the supermarket and undertook a spot of 'grazing' as we termed it, unfortunatly staff didnt take kindly to empty Gatorade bottles returned to shelfs.
So on exiting store we had our collars felt, the 5 villans were reduced to 2 who were willing to take a hit for the team, along came the burly policeman and a ride to the station in his car complete with shotgun hanging up on the mesh devide. anyway we had a good chat with cop turns out he was going to watch the event we were competing in.
At the station they wanted to hit us with $400 each so a quick pow wow reduced this to one taking the whole blame so hence $400usd for a few bottles of gaterade, good day out at the station though.
Obviously i couldnt condone such behavior now.....

Just want to be clear that it wasn't me. I have a dash in my name...
Good story though.

Seems to be a trend that's crept in over the last 10-15 years.

My pet hate is people (usually OAP couples) who block the whole aisle while discussing the price/salt/fat/fibre content of a basic item, when they probably buy exactly the same thing every week regardless. This is in complete contrast to the amazing turn of speed they produce if they think you are going to pick up something they want from the reduced counter 👿

Can't say it bothers me much, as long as the food's paid for. I've let my kids open bottles of water in the supermarket, and not thought twice about it.

The supermarket won't care, they'd lose more over the long run by adopting heavy handed security than they will over the odd packet of crisps that someone steals.

Can't say I've ever done it other than tasting the odd grape etc. but I can't see what's wrong with it either

I'm sure if it bothered the supermarkets that much, they'd stick a notice up to discourage at least a few of the grazers

Theft is "the intention to permanently deprive". So as long as you intend to pay for it within some, reasonable, amount of time, you're not stealing.

Obviously it's open to debate as to what an acceptable amount of time is, but eating a bag of crisps in a supermarket would most likely pass. However uncouth it is.

A person is guilty of theft if he dishonestly appropriates property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it. - Theft Act, 1968

I think some folk are too bothered by what other folk are doing

+1

bassspine - Member
until it's paid for it belongs to the shop. If the're bothered security can sort it. When people leave their trollys behind and walk off, if I see something I need in it, I'll pick it out.

I've done the opposite, added to trolleys when people are not looking, usually the kind of muppets who just park their trolley anywhere then walk off down the aisles, I don't imagine they even know what they've bought half the time anyway! Once got caught by the trolley owner in afrench hypermarket, and she practically chased me to the tills to return a cheap packet of pasta I'd dropped in her trolley because she was being a silly bitch.

I'd personally lock the doors of every supermarket in the land and burn everyone inside to death.

Horrible places and anyone eating as they shop deserves two to the back of the head. Three if it's a child.

For me its black and white. Due to potential shoplifting problems you EAT it after you pay for it.

Two reasons- I used to work in Woolies and we found used wrappers etc stuffed inbetween the shop fittings and in displays DAILY.

Secondly- Are you SURE your Switch/Solo card will work at the tillpoint?

You massive bunch of losers!

as a student (20 yrs ago) i used to eat a sandwich on the way round tescos and ditch the packet on an quite aisle, i was skint and needed dinner

come on ourkidsam, don't sit on the fence, tell us what you think!

I buy them something from the fag counter (not usually fags though) before we start because, without exception, I always have to go in and change a tenner before I can get a ****in trolley.

Two reasons- I used to work in Woolies

Now I remember, I did used to do it when I was a kid
Pick 'n' Mix is [was] free, right?

Secondly- Are you SURE your Switch/Solo card will work at the tillpoint?

Petrol stations seem to manage OK

If your card doesn't work or if you've left your wallet at home - you simply give them your name & address & pay later

On self-service checkouts put beer through as weighted onions for bonus prize special discount.

A 'mate' of mine used to steal 2 bottles of scotch daily from the local somerfield. The staff knew he was doing it, but were always to scared to say anything. Peat the Mexican was his name, although the nearest Mexico he's ever been was Parkhurst.

Arrrrrr Bless him.

Can't see any problem as long as you pay?

ourkidsam - Member

You massive bunch of losers!

Can this be an automated post in every thread?

Now I remember, I did used to do it when I was a kid
Pick 'n' Mix is [was] free, right?

It was when I was a kid. So were the table tennis balls in Dressers.

This is a good thread to remind me why I do internet supermarket shopping!

I rarely pay for any food when I go to the supermarket. I just eat a months worth of food while I'm there and store it in my camel-hump-esque pot belly.

theft act 1968.once you've eaten it you have permanently deprived the owner of their property,paying after is compensation not payment....surely?

Jeez, no PJ's and no eating the produce before you've coughed up. What next, no violently shaking the special offer 2l bottles of coke?

I'd personally lock the doors of every supermarket in the land and burn everyone inside to death.

dammit i misread this and thought burn was bum, my witty Barrymore related comeback is now entirely redundant.

Possibly because - in addition to all the other reasons mentioned - it's simply ****ing ill-mannered.

I'm not sure how manners come into it really, that's an odd statement.

Two reasons- I used to work in Woolies and we found used wrappers etc stuffed inbetween the shop fittings and in displays DAILY.

Car drivers often speed, do we ban all people from driving because they might speed? What a daft reasoning. As is the card issue, there are always ways around it in the unlikely event that your card is declined.

Like I say, the only reason I can see for disliking the idea is that some grotty members of the public think it's OK to steal by that route. But it doesn't mean that all do, so thinking that is totally irrational.