Does the express line really live up to its name?

[greensinestro]

Not in my book. I shop at Publix in South Florida and have determined the "10 items or less" sign means crap. I always see a customer with 30 or 40 items in her basket, and he or she will see this sign. Nonetheless, this customer will proceed to unload their groceries, and when the cashier reminds them of the policy, the customer's slick answer to that is "Oh, I'm breaking that up into four different orders." What's going on with that? Are they the sole person who is out buying groceries not only for themselves but for their neighbors and friends? Meanwhile, the person who just went for a loaf of bread or a gallon of milk has to wait three times the amount of time it would take to check out, because Publix and other companies are afraid of a bad rap if they deny the customer the "right" to break their items into several different orders.

[wagegoth]

The only thing that will work is if the customers who have fewer than 10 items complain. The squeaky wheel gets the grease.

[Demonoid Phenomenon]

Nope.
10 items MEANS 10 items.
If you have a cartload of 50 items and want to have it separated into 5 different transactions, well, that's real nice, but you need to go to a regular line.

I thank my lucky stars that I've never worked an express lane. Being a cashier is hard enough without adding the extra pain-in-the-butt of people who act like they can't count or comprehend what an express lane is for.

My hat is off to those who have had to deal with this horrific situation!

[greensinestro]

I wish I lived where you are. South Florida has an enormous amount of unique customers like these. I should have also mentioned the fact that it goes on in other stores as well, like Target and Wal-Mart. But, most of these people know that sooner or later, the managers will give in to them being it's either they hold up the line, or they do something to get the lines moving again.

[dizzy_starshine]

Back in my supermarket days the express line meant nothing. I saw trolleys going through the basket aisle daily. As said above only a customer complaint would do anything.

[South Texan]

The only thing that will work is if the customers who have fewer than 10 items complain. The squeaky wheel gets the grease.

I wish that were true. I have complained so many times about this to my local grocery store.

The cashiers all state that they will be fired if they try to enforce the express lane limitations. The "manager" will tell me she will look into it and that she is sorry it happened. Then nothing changes.

Two nights ago, I told the manager that I have been bringing this to her attention for five months and nothing had changed. When I asked her why cashiers are told they will be fired if they refuse the SC with fifty items, she hemmed around a little and wanted to know which cashier told me that. I told her several had done so, so I had no reason to doubt it was not true.

She offered me coupons instead of taking any sort of action.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

No. You're better off using the pathetic, single-man line. Cash only, no chitchat.

[Sofar]

Hell, they need to have a three-item express lane. No belt, no bagger, no alcohol, no cigarettes. No telephone numbers, either. Remember your card. I just came in here to get some candy, gods damn it.

I think it's kind of funny that my local market has an eleven-item express lane.

[Demonoid Phenomenon]

Eleven item limit?!

[Auto]

When I'm a customer, I prefer being behind a person with a large order rather than behind 3 customers in the express lane.

The bottleneck is usually paying, not scanning the merchandise. I'd rather wait for one person to find the right change or decide whether it's debit or credit or argue about her coupons than wait for 3 customers ahead of me to do it.

By the time some meathead finally pays for her five items so I'm now number three in line as opposed to number four, I could have the cashier in the slow lane handling my order.

I'm surprised more people don't know that and just get into the line where they're number two, even if it's 30 items. (a whole cart or two is another story.)

[shoegirl]

Yeah, right!

At the business where I work, there is no express lane (the average order being 9 items) even though the lines can get quite long. We tried it for a short time years ago and it was a disaster! It was 5 times longer than any other line in the store and took an eternity to get through. (you can't speed things up when people forget their pin #, take forever to write a check, etc.) When customers almost came to blows over someone with a full cart getting in the line, it was decided to stop this practice.

Still, we have SC's complain, "Where's your express lane? Why don't you have an express lane? Don't you know you need an express lane?" If they get really snotty about it, I just point to the longest line in the store and tell them, " Oh, we do have one right over there! You're welcome to switch to that line anytime." That usually shuts them up!

[Tito]

My former retail hell finally did away with the express lane a few years back, because people kept breaking the 10 items or less rule. My guess is that management just got tired of trying to enforce it.

[Brighid45]

If I've got an order that's under the item limit for the express lane, and some dumbass with a shopping cart full of stuff is in line ahead of me, unless they have been specifically directed there by a manager or something you bet I'll bitch. I'll make all kinds of noise at them--not the cashier, since s/he usually is powerless to stop morons from perpetrating such nonsense.

It's completely ridiculous how stores will cave to idiots who think that rules are for other people. Hey, I'm a customer too, and MY valuable time is being wasted by this yutz ahead of me with 50 items in a 10 item express lane!

[karma_gypsy]

Hell, they need to have a three-item express lane. No belt, no bagger, no alcohol, no cigarettes. No telephone numbers, either. Remember your card. I just came in here to get some candy, gods damn it.

Actually, the Wal-Mart where I live actually has those kinds of express lanes (two of them, I think). Little tiny counter top and the register, etc. and that's it , and it's located near the self-checkouts. I don't even think the aisle is even wide enough to get a cart through . . .

[Zombi]

We don't have an express lane, only the two cash-only lanes. I love working those two, because nobody ever has cash on them. I spend more time sweeping the floor or bagging than actually checking out.

Has anyone ever had the 'multiple items' customer? They come through with, say, 10 bottles of soft drink, then say "Well, I only gave you one item to scan, so it only counts as one!" Umm, no, it doesn't, because we're charging you for 10 items, and that's what's on the item tally in my till.
It's really only a technicality, because it's much quicker for them to say "I have 10 of these" and give you one to scan than it is for them to get every single one out of the trolley. A friend of mine in Germany used to argue with the cashiers about this EVERY TIME she went shopping - and she owned a kiosk, so she was buying in bulk.