Recently, in response to an uptick in thefts from retail stores receipt checkers are being placed at store exits to check receipts as a person leaves as proof of purchase for merchandise. But are shoppers legally required to stop?
Notably, even Walmart brought back it's greeters (now asset protection associates). While some people wait in line to get their receipts verified before leaving the store, others will not.
The reason is more of a deterant then security, as the Worker's Compensation associated with trying to prevent a person from leaving the store is often greater than the value of the actual items. However, the legal questions abound. One originates from this quote:
“As soon as I give you money those items are now mine,” said David Mickelson. “Get a search warrant. And for those of you that say all this checking without a reason is just how it is, you are part of the problem.”
According to a law known as the “shopkeeper’s privilege law,” shoppers may not have to stop at exits to have their receipts checked. The law states, “A merchant may detain a person for a reasonable time for the purpose of conducting an investigation in a reasonable manner whenever the merchant has probable cause to believe the person to be detained is attempting to unlawfully take or has unlawfully taken merchandise from the merchant’s premises.”
So, unless a store suspects that a person has committed a crime, they cannot legally stop a person exiting a store from leaving the store. There have actually been numerous cases surrounding these types of "detentions."
So if there is an issues with this at retailers like Wal-Mart, why is it common practices at Sam's or Costco?
Retailers who offer memberships usually require a person to give consent to have their receipts and other personal property checked upon request. The Costco terms and conditions for membership state, “Costco reserves the right to inspect any container, backpack, briefcase, or other bag, upon entering or leaving the warehouse and to refuse entry to anyone at our discretion.”
In addition, Costco’s terms for membership state, “To ensure that all members are correctly charged for the merchandise purchased, all receipts and merchandise will be inspected as you leave the warehouse.”
Sam’s Club uses the near-exact same verbiage as Costco in their membership general policies:
For merchandise, “Sam’s Club reserves the right to inspect any container, backpack, briefcase or other bag of any person upon entering or leaving any Sam’s Club location and to refuse entry to anyone at our discretion.“
For receipt-checking, the Sam’s Club policy reads, “To ensure that you are charged correctly for the merchandise you have selected, Sam’s Club may inspect or electronically scan your merchandise and electronic/phone or paper copy receipt(s) when you exit any Sam’s Club location.”
Therefore, while not stopping to get a receipt or bag checked at Costco or Sam’s Club is not illegal, it would be a violation of the store’s policy and could result in membership being revoked. It is a little like an HOA in which you have decided to join and you must abide by their rules in exchange for that membership.
May God Bless You, Your Business, and the United States of America,
Tom Winslow
