Martin Lewis put the question to his followers (Image: ITV)
A decision that everyone who shops for food in a supermarket will face is enough to divide the nation, it would seem. How shoppers choose to pay for their fridge, freezer and cupboard essentials often boils down to at least two options – self serve checkout tills, or staff checkout tills.
Posting on his Instagram feed, personal finance expert Martin Lewis asked his followers about one simple habit that splits supermarket shoppers. He said: « With 15 items of supermarket shopping, would you choose a self-service till or a staffed till if the queue was the same length? »
The results so far are divided, with Brits having strong opinions about where they pay for their supermarket shopping. Most supermarkets now have sections split between traditional manned tills with a staff member and rows of automated checkout machines where shoppers scan their own goods.
In the comment section, one person said: « I will choose staffed every time I’m offered the option. » Another put: « Staffed. Always. Even with two or three items. I like the contact with a human and jobs are important. »
Someone else wrote: « I prefer using staffed where I can [as] self-service is usually more bother than it’s worth. If you have anything that needs ID or a security tag or even a weight mismatch, you have to wait for someone who’s usually rushed off their feet and trying to help three other people with the same issue. It also takes away the personal interaction of shopping, but I understand why people don’t want that sometimes. »
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One more put: « Regardless of how long the queue is, I always use a staffed checkout to keep someone in a job! I never go into shops where there are only self-service. » Although lots seemed to prefer the idea of a supermarket worker scanning their shopping, others seemed quite happy with the self-serve option.
An Instagram user said: « I fully support keeping people in jobs and not replacing them with tech; however, if I’m shopping in the likes of Aldi/Lidl, I choose self-serve because I can’t pack quickly enough at the till in the tiny space they provide and the speed they go! »
Someone else put: « Self-service or scan and go, no matter how many items. I find shopping incredibly overwhelming and the less interaction I have to have with people the better. » One more claimed: « Scan as you shop is elite, pack whilst you go, nice and neatly at your own pace and not rushed competing in the till olympics.
There was another person who claimed: « It’s self-service or nothing. Just pick up the gun now and check out in 30 seconds. »
In the UK, it is common to see these self-service machines in lots of shops – not just supermarkets. A previous report suggested that some Brits are more likely to return to shops where they are served by a person rather than at an automated checkout.
Kim Samuel, founder of the Belonging Forum, an initiative dedicated to battling social isolation, said: « The rapid rise of self-service has dehumanised our high streets, with social consequences we’re only beginning to understand. Older people, in particular, have been disproportionately impacted, as this groundbreaking and timely research reveals.”
Human interaction was found to be most important for people over 55 – particularly older women – and people with disabilities. The research found a clear generational divide emerging, with younger people generally more comfortable with self-service and automated systems, while older people consistently preferred human interaction.
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