Chicken boarders

[Cinnamon]

For those that don't know,I work part time on the checkouts at Waitrose.

 

We had great fun today

In the afternoon it seems that the entire system for paying for goods with a chip & pin card went down.

for 10 mintues or so,we could only take cash - imagine how annoyed the people queing were with us!

Then after that for a further 40 mins,we could only take cash & cedit cards.

 

Eventually (& thank goodness) we got a back-up system in place,but we couldn't give cash back & our quick check system was down.

 

To make matters even worse, the local Tesco & Sainsburys were only taking cash all day,& it was the Henley Literary festival,so town was really busy.

 

At one point I looked up to see how many were in my queue,& counted about 15,all with full trolleys.

Strangely,people started almost panic buying & I was selling trolleys with 8 big bottles of milk,6 loaves of bread & huge packs of bottled water.

People were also pretty irate, although it wasn't our falut & in fact we were one of the only place to get back on track quickly.

 

How dependant on electronics we have become

 

I deserved & craved my post work glass of red tonight,I can tell you!

[Mollie333]

That must of been mad.

[sari]

I remembering this happening when I worked at the Co-Op about a hundred years ago....well, 20....before the days of chip and pin, debit cards etc...we still had those credit card carbon paper machines!!! It was a scorching summer, and thrips got into the tills...and it all went down.....had to shut the store!!! hahahahaha how we laughed!

[Redwing]

I was in Waitrose in Towcester earlier and the same thing happened there - loads of people all drawing out money at the cash machine too

 

It also shows how dependant we are that shops will accept cards - very few of us had any cash

[kitbag]

The same thing happened to me today at work too! Very stressful! Im not sure why it happened though?

[Space Chick]

I went to a farmers market yesterday where you could only pay cash. I found it rather refreshing handing over cash to people, it also makes you more acutely aware of how much you are spending when you can see your purse getting more and more empty

[jlo]

I went to a farmers market yesterday where you could only pay cash. I found it rather refreshing handing over cash to people, it also makes you more acutely aware of how much you are spending when you can see your purse getting more and more empty

 

That is a really good point. A few years ago when we were being careful with money, I would take out so much cash at the beginning of the week and not use my cards at all. Perhaps I should go back to doing that as it worked!

 

There was a thing on Yahoo yesterday about thefact that the chip and pin nightmare was national yesterday so lots of stressed out people I guess!

[Chucky Mama]

I heard that it happened at our local Sainsburys and that it was total chaos. Glad I decided not to go out shopping. I would have gone to either Sainsburys or Waitrose.

[Alis girls]

A bit Twilight zone do you think

[Geoid]

It made the news

I think I saw/read somewhere that we won't be using cash by 2020 or something, it will all be done by cards. I doubt that now

[bluekarin]

Luckily we didn't decide to go shopping yesterday! I don't envy you your job - usually I do what with all the glitterati who come through your checkout I think this is a lesson to all shops and banks that we mustn't rely on one for of payment, and that other options need to be open for things like this.

[meezers]

 

That is a really good point. A few years ago when we were being careful with money, I would take out so much cash at the beginning of the week and not use my cards at all. Perhaps I should go back to doing that as it worked!

 

There was a thing on Yahoo yesterday about thefact that the chip and pin nightmare was national yesterday so lots of stressed out people I guess!

 

 

Yes, when we are trying to save I take cash only for the grocery shopping.I do my main shop in Aldi, then go over the road to Sainsburys for the bits and pieces Aldi don't sell. For the last three weeks I have wandered around Sainsburys with £5 worth of stuff on my list but only £3 left in my purse it certainly makes you think about what you are buying, and surprisingly, we don't miss the things I cross off my list because I haven't enough in my purse.

I also get some strange looks at checkout when I have my cash counted out and ready to pay - mental arithmatic seems to be a thing of the past, we do rely too much on technology.

[Lewis]

We went to Iceland + Lidl yesterday, was shocked at how much stuff I got for a tenner.

I still made sure I bought FR chicken and eggs, we got stuff to keep at the back of the cupboard + in the freezer.

FR Welsh eggs were 85p! - no excuse to buy battery at that price!

 

Its so easy to think I'll have that + that 'cos we've just got our loans through, so I did just put it on my card ... machines were working here.

 

Now being a student I'm going to try + do the cash thing - I did count up how much stuff was in my head so I knew roughly how much it was

[Chucky Mama]

Yay Lidl I needed a couple of things today and nipped into Tescos as it was closest. Tills etc all fine but it was still hideous. There was a child of about 3 complete with dummy that screamed around the entire shop.

[Alis girls]

Our computers in the health centre I wokr in went down twice in recent years and each time I ended up seeing patients who said they were on my list but werent! Very odd

[The Dogmother]

Yay Lidl I needed a couple of things today and nipped into Tescos as it was closest. Tills etc all fine but it was still hideous. There was a child of about 3 complete with dummy that screamed around the entire shop.

 

wasn't Banbury by any chance, was it? I refuse to go there unless I am really desperate - as in when Rosie has forgotten to ask me to order her cookery lesson ingredients

[Calamity Jane]

I love that idea of shopping only with cash. We have been trying to think of ways to cut back - I have a feeling that is the way to go. Thank you fellow omleteers !! It really is true to say you hear the very best ideas on here !

[Chucky Mama]

Yay Lidl I needed a couple of things today and nipped into Tescos as it was closest. Tills etc all fine but it was still hideous. There was a child of about 3 complete with dummy that screamed around the entire shop.

 

wasn't Banbury by any chance, was it? I refuse to go there unless I am really desperate - as in when Rosie has forgotten to ask me to order her cookery lesson ingredients

 

No, not Banbury but you could have heard her there I am sure DD asked me never to take her their again, ever. I am happy to oblige. There seemed to be a high proportion of women wearing bras that were several sizes too small for them too. Not a pretty sight. Maybe it was a bad day. I am becoming a supermarket s"Ooops, word censored!"

[The Dogmother]

Join the gang CM... that and their ethics are the reasons that I now shop online with Ocado.

Edited October 4, 2010 by Guest

[chickencam]

I must admit that I like shopping in Waitrose, because you do get a better class of customer

 

We use Morrisons the most though because it is only half a mile away. It had hideous queues though.

 

I heard about this till trouble, so I was glad that we went shopping on Friday evening. I try to go after 7pm it tends to be much quieter then.

[Cinnamon]

We close at 7, & at 5 to without fail SOMEONE will come in with a blooming trolley & proceed to do a big shop,even when the shout out have gone out & sometimes even after half the lights have been switched off.

Every day we have to ask a customer to make their way to the checkout (although we all forgave him when it was Orlando Bloom )

 

Stoopid thing it tht people do this late shopping because they think they are going to get a marked down bargain,but we actually reduce everything at 5,so there is less choice at 7

 

Sorry - rant over.

[chickencam]

I wouldn't shop at 7pm if the store closed then, I haven't got the front. I spend many years working in retail so I know what it is like when you want to get home.

 

Our local supermarkets mostly close at 8pm and 9pm on Thursdays and Fridays.

[Space Chick]

I wish I had a Waitrose near me Nearest one is in Cardiff an hour away I do go there occasionally though, as I think its fab that you can get free range duck

 

I do mine between Sainsburys and Tesco. I despise Tesco, but they are my nearest, and are cheaper for a lot of things, so sometimes I need to sell my principles down the river for some staples so I can afford my organic meat from my farmers market

[Cinnamon]

A quick update on this.

I couldn't do my shift last night,as I have the fluey bug that kept my daughter off on Saturday.

 

Waitrose are giving all the checkout crew who worked that horrendous shift a £5 gift voucher,as a token of appreciation.

Isn't that great......enough for a bottle of wine.

Not sure if its all branches or just mine,but I can't tell you how great it is to feel appreciated at work something I have never really had before

[chickencam]

I have heard that John Lewis partnership in general are good to work for. It makes all the difference if you feel appreciated.

 

edited to say that I hope you get well soon.