The tides are turning on self-checkout. Several retailers, including Dollar General and Kroger, have started to pull away from the use of self-service kiosks in stores, while other companies, like Target, have placed new restrictions on the use of these machines. But not all shoppers are happy about these changes. In fact, a recent self-checkout rule at Walmart has many customers up in arms.
RELATED: These Are All the Walmart Locations Closing in 2024.
Back in March, Business Insider reported that shoppers had started to notice that some Walmart stores were limiting the use of certain self-checkout lanes to two groups of people, Spark delivery drivers and Walmart+ members.
Spark delivery drivers are contract workers hired by Walmart to shop for and deliver products to customers, while Walmart+ is the retailer's exclusive subscription service that costs $98 per year.
Shoppers who don't belong to these groups and Walmart employees themselves have been expressing their frustration over the new self-checkout rule.
"At my store we have 10 self-checkouts and six are dedicated for Spark drivers/Walmart+ members—four for Spark and two for plus," one person wrote in a Reddit post about the new change. "Any other stores doing this? Kinda sucks when you’re trying to get a snack on your break and there's a [expletive] of people and only four self checkouts available."
Others claim the new limitations on self-checkout lanes are causing them to have to wait even longer to pay.
"Only Walmart would have an entire section of self-checkout closed and leave only six open to use," one X user wrote in a June 30 post. "Long [expletive] line for no [expletive] reason. I hate shopping here."
"Walmart never ceases to amaze me. Your lines are already long, so instead of opening more self checkout lanes, you close them and make them for Spark drivers only," another X user posted. "What sense does that make?"
RELATED: Walmart Shoppers Say Never Buy Great Value "Ever"—Here's Why.
Many shoppers say that this new self-checkout change is their last straw, inspiring them to move on from the retailer completely.
"At the Walmart by my house they closed down all of the self checkout lanes, and turned them into lanes for their Spark delivery service," a different X user wrote in a post. "Now everyone has to wait in 20+ minute checker lanes while those self checkout lanes sit empty. My solution, I stopped going there."
But the decision to limit certain self-checkout lanes is not a nationwide directive from the company. Instead, Walmart spokesperson Joe Pennington told Business Insider that store managers are allowed to experiment with checkout rules to figure out what works best for the customers and employees at their specific locations.
"Based on several factors including customer and associate feedback, shopping patterns, and business needs, some locations are temporarily testing different checkout staffing options," Pennington explained back in March.
The company is also denying claims that Walmart is trying to persuade more people to sign up for Walmart+ by limiting self-checkout lanes.
"From time to time, our stores adjust the use of staffed checkouts and self-checkouts. For example, a store might start or end the day with staffed checkouts. As the number of shoppers and associate staffing increases, these stores open self-checkout registers to manage the increased customer flow. This process isn’t new,” Walmart said in a statement to Supermarket News.
The company added, "During these times of limited access, some stores are designating select self-checkout stations for Walmart+ customers using our Scan and Go service and Spark drivers for quicker access and delivery services. This decision is intended to better manage checkout availability."
Best Life reached out to Walmart about these new customer complaints, and we will update this story with its response.
