Giant Foods Cashier Said I Had To Be 30 To Buy Zyrtec!
Reader Amie had an odd encounter with a Giant Food cashier today. As she was checking out the cashier asked if she was 30 because he wasn't supposed to sell Zyrtec to anyone under 30.
I went to the doctor today and she suggested that I try Zyrtec for my allergies instead of a prescription. On my way back to work, I stopped by a Giant Food Store to buy some. As I was checking out, the cashier asked me if I was 30. I said no, that I am only 29 and gave him my ID. He said that he would go ahead and sell me my medicine, but not to tell anyone that he did so. When I asked why, he said that they are not allowed to sell anyone Zyrtec (and possibly other medications, but I didn’t ask) to people under 30. Luckily I had my doctor’s recommendations in my purse with me if there had been any problems, but I found the age limit of 30 to be a bit high….
Amie
We suspected this guy was just hitting on you, so we called Giant Foods and confirmed that they had no age restrictions on over-the-counter allergy medicines. Feel free to complain to the manager of the store where this apron-wearing lothario works.
Post a comment
Comments:
@davebg5:
or a stalker. He's memorized Amie's address, and the dismembered animal gifts will commence.
@davebg5:
Likely the cashier is just a dumbass.
QFT.
The cashier mistook
if customer<30; then
check id;
if id >= 18; then
sell;
fi
else
sell;
fi
for
if customer > 30; then
sell;
else
stalk/hiton customer
fi
@davebg5:
That may be, but why would there be an age restriction for Zyrtec anyway? And how is someone going to get in trouble for not checking ID on someone who appears to be under 30? It is the definition of subjective, and I would like to see a manager try to write up someone for that.
They don't card me -- must be the silver spray paint around my mouth and nose (gold paint on the weekends).
That is too weird. I could maybe understand (although not necessarily condone) their having restrictions on *decongestants* like the original Sudafed, whose ingredients can be used to cook up a batch of meth. (You can still get it, but it's behind the pharmacist's counter.) But Zyrtec? Huh?
Great allergy med. I was very happy when it finally went OTC and generic this past year. Blue Cross was making me do a $40 co-pay because it was a Tier 3 med.
A couple weeks ago I bought alcohol at Wal-mart and the register prompted "Customer under 40?" The cashier studied me for a few seconds before grudgingly looking at my ID.
I think it's just a safety net to card anyone who may be close to the age limit. Although I have never heard of an age limit for Zyrtec and I buy it all the time.
Here in Ohio (maybe other places, I don't know) you have to show ID for drugs like Sudafed in case you plan on making meth.
Reminds me of when I was kept from buying spray paint for a model when I was under 21. I was like "really? I would spend THIS much money to tag something with a spray paint in a specific military shade when I could go by a can for .89 cents?" I really hate when stores make up rules, as if the ones set by the government makes up where not good enough (Im looking at you meth kings) Seriously you going to have to live in a test tube your entire life if this shit keeps up.
@rwakelan: No, because you don't need to explicitly state an alternative action. Once the "id >= 18" results as true (or false), the if statement is escaped. If id < 18, !sell, is implicit.
My code is a nested if.
The second if happens if the customer is under 30, with no else. The else only happens if the first if, customer is 30 or over. Or null.
if true; then
exit
fi
I work for Stop and Shop at customer service, which is the same as Giant-Landover.
On the registers when you scan an item, it says Under 30? Check ID. This means that if the person looks under thirty, you are to check to see that they meet the proper age requirement to purchase an item. I guess the geniuses never bother to go past that step when training the new cashiers.
@dualityshift: Always possible. I know that when I worked at a liquor store in college I made sure all the cute girls had to show ID.
Ah...good times...good times...
years ago while home from college on break, I was carded at 7-11 in NJ to buy a lighter... not even cigarrettes! This was soon after the 18+ carding started for smokes. I was 19 but had run out w/o my ID to pick up milk and juice, and decided to get a spare lighter. needless to say i left without the lighter. this is the same 7E where i used to buy boxes of sparklers and pick up cartons of cigs for my mom when i was 10 - with no questions asked! sign me: glaurious
@Rectilinear Propagation: Yes it is. Older women have age issues, so someone carding them makes them feel younger, and happier. If someone cards them with that intention....
@MissPeacock: Really? What were you doing buying Wite Out? Don't you know that's what terrorists use to fix their mistakes?
I've got nothing.
This was obviously an employee misunderstanding the rule of if they look under 30 id them...to mean if they are under thirty don't sell to them...
Which of course makes no sense as it is non-Rx and not a tobacco or alcohol product. There is no reason to card for it.
I used to use sudafed as my non-rx med of choice for sinus problems...however they have jacked the system up with forcing me to go to the counter and show ID and sign for it...Like this does ANYTHING! If I were a maker of Crank I would merely charge my consumers the standard charge + a box of sudafed...problem solved.
D-
@floyderdc: I came here for these. Left disappointed. So I'll substitute:
This cashier was obviously a GENIUS and flash-memorized her address and id number. She will lost all her worldly possessions in a fortnight!
Seems likely that the cashier was just not that bright: lots of stores have a policy along the lines of "if you look like you might be under 30, we'll card you for booze, cigarettes and pharmaceuticals". Thousands of stores do this, just to cover their asses. I'm betting that the cashier was just dumb enough to not get the nuances of the rule, interpreting it as "we don't sell booze, cigarettes and pharmaceuticals to people under 30".
I had an idiot cashier get short with me once this winter at the self checkout which carded me for Mucinex DM tablets.
I simply noted that I found it odd it would ask for ID on that item and the lady snapped "It might have alcohol in it!" (Note: these were solid tablets)
At the time, I didn't know you could overdose and get high off of cough medicine. I should have gone back and apologized for not being up to date on the most recent OTC overdose crazes.
@donopolis: If I were a maker of Crank I would merely charge my consumers the standard charge + a box of sudafed...problem solved.
They actually do this now. Don't ask me how I know it, but, yeah, it seems to be the standard practice around here.

























That sly dog...