Latest news with #selfserve
News.com.au
18 hours ago
- Business
- News.com.au
‘Discrimination': Disturbing trend creeping into major supermarkets
If you've recently tried to use a crisp tenner to pay for your weekly shop, only to be met with a card-only screen and a quiet sense of rejection, you're not alone. Shoppers across the country are noticing a subtle but significant change at their local Coles and Woolworths stores – cash payment options at self-serve check-outs are quietly disappearing. Slowly but surely, notes and coins are being nudged out of the equation, replaced with slick tap-and-go terminals. Both supermarket giants do still accept cash but trying to find a self-serve machine that lets you insert a note may feel like a scavenger hunt. Many stores now offer just one or two cash-enabled kiosks – often tucked at the far end of the self-serve row. visited three major supermarkets across Sydney's inner west – two Woolworths stores and one Coles – and found that paying with cash is becoming more difficult than ever for those who prefer to skip the card tap. At the first Woolworths location in Balmain, only two out of 14 self-serve check-outs accepted cash, with the rest card-only. The supermarket giant has introduced new signage to make it easier for customers to identify those that accept cash. For this location, those that accepted cash were wrapped in green while those that were card only donned a slick black wrap. A second Woolworths store in Leichhardt painted a slightly different picture, with six out 18 self-serve machines still accepting cash – a small comfort for those not ready to go fully digital. These check-outs were wrapped in a neon green as oppose to the card-only black wrapped check-outs – making them easily visible to cash-using customers. But Coles wasn't so accommodating. At Birkenhead Point Coles, none of the self-serve check-outs accepted cash at all. Customers who wanted to pay with notes or coins had to queue at the limited assisted check-outs, which had no staff working them. When asked by where cash can be used a Coles staff member replied, 'at the assisted check-outs, but no one is working them right now.' Critics of the shift argue that moving away from cash risks marginalising older Australians, low income earners, and those who simply prefer not to rely on entirely digital payments. Melbourne based financial journalist and campaign manager of CashWelcome, Jason Bryce says Coles and Woolworths are 'actively discriminating against cash users.' 'I want to use that word. because I know that the supermarkets actively discriminate against the millions of Australians who use cash,' he told 'I get emails regularly from people who have complained to Coles and Woolies and to the ACCC, RBA, Human Rights Commission because cash users are forced to wait for 10 minutes for a cash accepting terminal to become free. Meanwhile the card users sail straight through.' Mr Bryce says the longest he has waited to pay with cash at his local Coles supermarket was upwards of 40 minutes. 'These people want to get rid of cash. And we all know that everybody needs cash at some stage, whether you rely on it day to day or just occasionally,' he added. 'They've got to do more than accept cash. Cash has got to be equal to the other payment options. All terminals should accept cash and card.' Additionally, Australians are spending an estimated $140 annually in card surcharges and fees which Mr Bryce believes is actually 'much more than that.' The Federal government has already announced plans to ban debit card surcharges from January 1 2026, in a move aimed at putting money back into consumers' pockets. While the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is still reviewing the proposal, initial modelling suggests that removing the often-despised fees could save consumers a whopping $500 million annually. Surcharges, which are commonly tacked onto small purchases at cafes, retail stores and online check-outs, have long drawn the ire of shoppers. According to RBA data, almost half (45 per cent) of consumers in 2022 said they would opt for a non-surcharged payment method when presented with the option. 20 per cent of Aussies went even further, stating they would avoid shopping at businesses that imposed these extra charges all together. However, Mr Bryce isn't convinced this move is in the best interest of Australians. 'I support surcharges on card transactions,' he said. 'We know Aussies don't like a fee but this fee is upfront. If there's a ban on surcharges, those costs will become absorbed in the payment and we won't know what the cost is anymore, that's a big problem.' A recent CHOICE survey of almost 13,000 Aussies confirmed that 97% believe it's important that businesses selling essential goods and services are mandated to accept cash. 'Obviously we can't avoid supermarkets, so they've got to do more than just say, 'yeah, we accept cash.' That's disingenuous,' says Mr Bryce. Coles insist they're not eliminating cash. A spokesperson for Coles said: 'We know that cash remains an important payment method for some customers, and we have no plans to remove cash self-service options. 'If any of our customers can't find their preferred checkout option, we always have team members in the service area to who are there to help.'
The Independent
19-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Greggs makes major change to stores in shoplifting hotspots
Greggs is removing its self-serve fridges and instead placing sandwiches behind the counter in an attempt to combat shoplifting. The bakery chain, which has more than 2,600 shops across the UK, has launched the new trial in at least five stores, including one in Whitechapel, east London. The new policy will mean customers will now be unable to pick up refrigerated sandwiches and drinks themselves and will instead need to ask a shop assistant to hand over what they would like from behind the counter. It is understood this small trial is only being introduced in stores which are exposed to higher levels of shoplifting, and there are currently no plans to introduce this new format to all stores across the country. A spokesperson for Greggs said: 'This is one of a number of initiatives we are trialling across a handful of shops which are exposed to higher levels of anti-social behaviour. 'Customers can expect to see our full range of great value and tasty Greggs favourites available from behind the counter. 'The safety of our colleagues and customers remains our number one priority.' In its latest trading report, Greggs said it made a pre-tax profit of £203.9 million in 2024, 8.3 per cent higher than in 2023, as it launched new shops, extended its opening hours and raised prices. The bakery chain said in March many customers were continuing to worry about the cost of living, including energy prices, mortgage and rent costs. The chain raised the prices of some of its food items last year – most recently, the national price of its traditional sausage roll increased by 5p to £1.30, while other items such as coffee and doughnuts also rose by between 5p and 10p. It comes as the number of shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales in a year surpassed half a million for the first time on record, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Police recorded 516,971 shoplifting offences in 2024, a 20 per cent increase on the 429,873 offences in 2023 and the highest number recorded since modern record-keeping practices began in 2003. The ONS said shoplifting offences have been running at record levels for the past two years, noting a "sharp rise" following the Covid-19 pandemic. Retailers across the country are implementing new strategies in a crackdown on shoplifting. Most recently, supermarket giant Sainsbury's introduced 'VAR-style' cameras at self-checkouts, with customers being shown a replay if they do not scan items correctly.
