Earlier this year, a lawyer went viral after warning users against using self-checkout machines. In her video, she argues that the store’s loss prevention department is cracking down, inadvertently causing people who forget to scan items to face considerable consequences. In some cases, the person may not have actually stolen anything at all, she said. Nonetheless, these individuals may unexpectedly face the company’s maximum legal power.
It now appears that her warning was appropriate. A TikTok user recently went viral after she was charged and banned for life from Walmart for forgetting to scan one of five lunchable items at a self-checkout machine. According to user Barb (@fleegus159_barb), these lunchables are only $1.98 each. That price matches what’s listed on Walmart’s website.
Barb’s video currently has over 950,000 views.
@fleegus159_barb #walmart #honestmistake #lunchables #PostitAffirmations #AmazonMusicProudHeroes #PrimeDayDreamDeals #MickeyFriendsStayTrue #CVSPaperlessChallenge ♬ Soundtrack – Janx_Littlefoot
This is not the first case to document its nature. In May, KGUN9, an ABC affiliate in Tucson, Arizona, reported stories of several people claiming they were cited for self-checkout errors.
KGUN9 interviewed a woman who claimed she just forgot to scan some items at self-checkout.
“Out of the shadows, two women jumped out and grabbed my cart, took me through the store, into a tiny interrogation room…and told me that I had been arrested for shoplifting,” she recalls. “They kept putting me there. About an hour and a half. They called the sheriff. They said they were going to have to arrest me because it was over $30. I’ve never been arrested in my life. I’m 60 Multi-year-old and they were just very rude and flippant and I kept asking them to explain things because I didn’t understand what was going on.”
Local consultant Sandra Barger was also interviewed for this article. Barger claims she noticed the trend after observing a flood of petty theft complaints against people who were “not her typical petty theft clients.”
“It’s the same story. You know, I’m standing there scanning and I’m carrying my kids. I have a client with his kids…and it’s just one simple thing he missed, you know, this It can happen, anyone can do it,” she detailed. “Another client of mine is a business owner who bought over $2,000 of items and one of the items he missed, so he was quoted.”
On TikTok, users took to Barb’s video as a warning about using self-checkout machines.
“So never use self-checkout again. Got it,” one user wrote.
“That’s exactly why I don’t use self-checkout,” the second added. “The responsibility is too great.”
We’ve reached out to Walmart via the media contact form and Barb via the TikTok comment.
Braden Bell
Braden Bjella is a cultural writer. His work can be found at Mixmag, Electronic Beats, Schön! magazines etc.
I’m a dedicated content creator and researcher with a strong passion for technology, innovation, and digital culture. At Howh.net, I focus on delivering well-researched, accurate, and engaging articles that help readers understand complex topics in a simple and practical way. My goal is to inform, inspire, and make reliable information