Mark used a gift card to buy a couple DVDs at a Florida Best Buy, then walked out the door without showing his receipt to the employee at the door. For this “crime,” a sheriff’s deputy stopped Mark and threatened to arrest him if he didn’t go back and let an employee check his receipt.
He writes:
After I exited the store and was in the parking lot, walking towards my car, I heard someone start yelling, in a stern and urgent voice “SIR! SIR!” I heard quick footsteps behind me and turned around. It was a (sheriff’s deputy). He told me that Best Buy employees needed to see my receipt. I responded that I’d left the store, my business with them was concluded, and that they had no right to demand to see my receipt. The officer said that it was store policy. Regardless of store policy, I said, they still had no right to take or search my possessions. He asked me why I was being difficult. I pointed out that it was an imposition upon me to be chased down and detained in the parking lot and made to hand my property over to a third party, something which they had no authority to demand. The officer said that while they didn’t have the authority, *he* did have the authority. He continued, threatening me with arrest, “Go back and show them the receipt, or go to jail. Those are your options.”I asked him why he didn’t just take the receipt from me, if they had the right to see the receipt. “I’m not going to touch your property,” he replied. I told him that I ultimately didn’t care about the receipt itself — it wasn’t important to me — but that I objected to their demand that they detain me and inspect it. The officer suggested that he take the receipt back to them so that they could “mark it.” I didn’t resist (I was there with my wife and infant son — I would have been in the dog house if I got arrested), so he took the receipt out of my hand, and walked back across the parking lot to the store. He returned a minute later, and silently handed me the receipt. I asked for his card. He turned around and walked away, replying “I don’t have to give you my card” while walking away.
Mark says the employee didn’t even check his bag, but simply grabbed the receipt, highlighted the phrase “keep your receipt” on the piece of paper.
A reminder: With rare exceptions, unless you sign a membership agreement for a retailer promising that you’ll subject yourself to receipt checks, you’re not obligated to stop and whip it out.
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Wow, I didn’t know the police were willing to enforce store policies now.
It seems the only pre-requisite to being a cop nowadays is: Are you uneducated? Have anger management issues? You’re hired!
It’s too bad the shopper’s wife didn’t get the cop’s actions on a cell phone video. I would have loved to see them sue the police — and win!
Dog house or not, unlawful arrest can sometimes = $$$.
I’d take the gamble with the unlawful arrest, even if it meant a few nights in jail.
I’d remind the officer that unless he has probable cause to suspect that I stole something, the store policy of Best Buy counts of jack – his detainment is unlawful.
It starts with the police getting involved with harassing a person on behalf of Best Buy. Then it progresses to the police visiting your house to verify you have paid cable service. Where does it end? If a store wants to have a policy of checking a person’s purchases, it should be required to clearly post the policy for all to see. In my mind, once I buy something it is mine and I am under no legal obligation to show anything to a Best Buy minion. If posted, I can simply shop on-line. After all, why buy anything from Best Buy?
The only one violating the law around here is the police officer. Since it is a police regulation in almost every jurisdiction that an officer must provide their name and/or badge number when requested and/or have it visible at all times, I would certainly file a complaint with the jurisdiction of the officer.
Most likely he is off-duty providing provide service to the store. In that case. the jurisdiction probably has regulations as to the officer’s conduct. You could get some traction there also.
I hope I don’t have to quote Ben Franklin here about this issue…
Has no one in the US ever heard of Implied consent? By willingly shopping at store where this practice to reduce loss is conducted you are giving consent for them to require to check your receipt. Implied Consent applies to privileges such as shopping at a certain store. By not showing you receipt you are in breach of that agreement.
Implied consent to be check up on after you leave the store?
Really? It sorta goes against hundreds of years worth of buyer expectations.
Do you have anything to back that up? I haven’t seen anything that allows a store to do any more than ban you for violating one of their policies.
I think the cop, as a public servant, is required to give you his badge number upon request. If he was working a security detail, the sheriffs office will have a record of it. If you want to pursue this (not recommended), call them.
its just a double check, the receipt isn’t law…if that was the case, ppl would double scan, and once you sign on the dotted line, “your business is concluded” also
this was a bit out of line for the “officer”
trust me, retailers don’t think each guest is gonna buy from them, but what’s this person gonna steal if they could
one of the perks of capitalistic freedoms i suppose
Two words: Online. Shopping.
The biggest problem with the receipt checking issue is what should a consumer do if they actually shop at that particular store on a regular basis? Challenging Best Buy’s policy (or in my case, Fry’s Electronics Policy) will just cause me problems when I go back. They will immediately place me in the category of “That F’n Guy.”
I agree that it’s annoying to be asked to show a receipt when I just paid for the stuff, but if I plan on going back to that store in the near future, I don’t want to be labeled as a problem customer.
It amazes me how stupid you assholes are. You SERIOUSLY bring up a discussion about the 4th amendment as it pertains to a 15 SECOND RECEIPT CHECKING AT A BEST BUY?
SERIOUSLY??
I can’t imagine how pathetic your lives are to be so concerned with a “win” by not showing your receipt at a door.
The whole reason for it is to discourage theft. THAT IS IT.
Not one of those loss prevention employees gives a damn about what you bought. It is simply to deter theft, since you can’t predict who will steal.
You all live sad lives.
Regardless of how you feel about it, it is a 4th amendment issue, and I don’t have to show anyone proof of ownership of the things I own unless they have reason to believe I stole it (and refusal to submit to a search does not constitute such a reason).
All that’s necessary is to be assertive: say ‘no thank you,’ and keep moving. But being assertive with people can be difficult. We are socially conditioned to do what’s asked of us and to follow policy (and most of the time that’s a positive habit). But that’s no reason to criticize people who are prepared to do what you are not yet ready for.
The thing that none of you brainiacs get is that THE DOOR GREETER HAS NO IDEA WHAT IS IN THE BAG IS YOUR PROPERTY!!
THAT IS WHY THEY F’N CHECK IT!
How hard would it be to bring an old bag into a store from a prior purchase, throw some items in it, and start to walk out the door. Not very difficult at all actually.
But because you mindless drones think you have some constitutional right to be douchebags, you decide to make someone’s job more difficult. I really hope the few of you that work and are not being supported by me and others have someone difficult at your McDonalds one of these days.
RTFA. He was chased down by a cop. And learn the law. It’s been told to you enough.
I wasn’t responding to the issue of the cop. I posted about the fact of receipt checking. That has nothing to do with the law, as much as everyone is bringing it up. It’s not about profiling someone either. Why don’t you read the post instead of criticizing?
And I could care less what you think your rights are. You have no concept of what real life is all about when you make a bitch fit about something this minor.
Why don’t you parade against the child molesters?
How about your politicians who continually take a ton of money to do absolutely nothing, while our teachers, firemen, and policemen struggle to find work and keep it?
Why not make a stand against the gangs selling dope in your streets, poisoning adults and children alike?
No, let’s come bitch on a little read internet board about some made up right we have to not show a receipt when we leave a store.
did you think all that stuff started big, or did it start small and then grow? Kill it when it’s small enough to deal with personally.
Meanwhile, the drug dealers are supported by our drug policy, and pedos aren’t really common enough to bother with.
^^ this… agree
I love what could be solved in 15 seconds of rational adult conversation in real life always turns into an ego pissing contest of thermonuclear proportions online.
God forbid we worry about housing the homeless, or employing the jobless, or doing ANYTHING CONSTRUCTIVE with our feeble minds. Instead we choose to go on to smear sites like this and waste our time on frivolous arguments about having some underpaid and overabused LP guy take 15 seconds to check the receipt.
Get over yourselves… sheesh.
The point here is to resist this sort of thing when it’s small so you don’t have to resist it when it gets big. An ounce of prevention and all that.
I’d have happily taken my items back to the store… to return them. It’s bad enough being bothered with it from the store, now you have cops following you? Treat everyone like a criminal and you’ll lose all your customers.
…Oh yawn! These receipt stories grow tiresome.
I have to wonder if it is my 6’3 230lbs frame that stops peopl4e from doing this to me, I have been ignoring clerks asking for a receipt for years and never had an issue.
Geez, it’s like the brick & mortar retailers are begging me to do all my shopping online. I’m happy to comply with that [unstated] suggestion.
This is not a Best Buy problem, it’s about a guy with a badge being a bully because he was too mentally deficient to manage the situation reasonably. It gets better?
I hope this makes you all feel better. I bought an LED TV at Walmart last week and rolled it out the door and no one asked to see my receipt.
Please feel free not to shop at a store if you disagree with their loss-prevention procedures.
I think this policy at Best Buy is annoying and ridiculous. I did buy my i pod from BB and had to be escorted from the case where they were locked to the register at the front. After I paid for it, I walked the 6 or 8 feet to the front door where I had my receipt checked. So it’s not as though they have high dollar items sitting on the shelves for people to be able to put in their pocket, etc. And really, the register where you pay for your items is only a few feet from the front door. It’s not as though you can stuff a bunch of items in your bag on the way out. It has nothing to do with inventory because that is done electronically while you check out and the employees rarely check to see what is actually in your bag and match it up with the receipt.
Boo friggin hoo. You feel better now that you stood up for your infantile right to kick and scream like a 5 year old brat just because you don’t like a store’s loss prevention policy?
These receipt checking fighters make my day. I hope each and everyone one of them has someone who makes THEIR job needlessly stressful and difficult.
“It’s my receipt, it’s my property, blah blah blah blah” You sound like some kids 2 year old sister screaming “MINE! MINE!” Get over yourselves.
Interesting officer.
Please SHOW me the LAW that compels me to show a receipt – by-the-way, somewhere in your academy training they SHOULD have trained you as to the difference between “company policy” and actual statute law.
By-the-way, since you chose to get involved, if you do NOT show me your I.D. or give me your card, i’ll be on the phone with your supervisor AND legal counsel before you can get your donut-laden-ass out of the parking lot.
People have debated whether stores are violating unreasonable search and seizure because they’re not the government.
Isn’t a police officer a representative of the government, and therefore now violating your constitutional rights?
sounds similar:
http://www.pharmacytimes.com/issue/pharmacy/2005/2005-03/2005-03-9382. she got $20,000.
she got nothing. It’s worth noting that we live in a country where you can be arrested for filling a pain prescription. Abscesses HURT!
Here is the what the law is according to the belief of places like Best Buy and Wall Mart: Even though you paid for the merchandise, you do not actually own it until you leave the store and go through a final checkout. It remains the property of the store until you are off the store property.
I would have went back in and returned the DVD’s
1. searching bags implies guilt of all ur customers
2. police have no right to enforce store policys. they are supposed to enforce the law which was not broken here.
3. he should have said ok arrest me and then sued the police department for false arrest because there was no real charge but i understand him wanting to just get it over with
4. what kinda po dunk town has deputies outside enforcing receipt checking procedures?