Even Retailers Are Fed Up With Self-Checkout

Self-checkout machines aren't only annoying customers, Quartz reports, as a growing number of large retailers have begun rethinking the costly tech. Last year, companies like Target, Walmart, Dollar General, and British grocer Booths have pared down (and in some cases eliminated) how the automated systems work in their chains, largely due to theft. Shoppers are 21 times more likely to slip purchases past scanners than they are human cashiers, doubling theft rates in stores. Human error also accounts for losses—a survey by Lending Tree found that one in five shoppers said they'd unintentionally stolen items during the self-checkout process (while one in seven admitted to stealing outright).

"Stores saw this as the next frontier," Christopher Andrews, a professor and author of a book on automation's effects on customers, tells the BBC. "If they could get the consumer to think that was a preferable way to shop, then they could cut labor costs. But they're finding that people need help doing it, or that they'll steal stuff." And it's quite a chunk that they're losing. Per CNN Business, stores with self-checkout lanes had loss rates around 4%, double the industry average, as shoppers have found creative ways to short retailers at kiosks. Techniques beyond skipping a scan include selecting cheaper items like bananas when buying pricey items (like steak), scanning counterfeit barcodes, and simply walking out without paying.

And while retailers have seen some savings from eliminating positions, employees are still needed to manage the machines, aid customers through dreaded bagging area errors, and check IDs for age-restricted items. Experts believe the costs retailers sunk into investing in automated checkout systems—four machines can run into the six-figure range—will result in a hybrid employee-machine solution. "They spent billions putting it in stores, and are hoping they can still get the public to buy into it," Andrews says. Some data suggests that robot cashiers have grown on customers, with 60% reporting they favored them in a 2021 survey despite the majority experiencing errors. Maybe it's all those banana-priced steaks? (Meet the robots that will be making our food).