Why customers are outraged over Coles' new self-service rule

Supermarket giant Coles is facing backlash from shoppers after introducing a trolley ban trial for self-service checkouts.

Twenty stores around the country will take part in the trial which stops customers from wheeling their groceries through the self-serve checkout, however it remains unclear which of the 800 stores will be impacted.

Customers suggested the new trial was being rolled out to combat theft at self-serve checkouts, but a Coles spokesperson dismissed those claims, saying the “basket only” trial is simply intended to ease congestion.

“To improve service to customers and ease congestion, in a small number of stores we are accepting baskets only through the assisted checkouts,” a Coles spokesperson told Yahoo7 News.

She said staff members would be available to serve customers with trolleys in the main lane registers, and would open an additional lane if required.

However, dissatisfied customers have taken their frustrations to social media saying they simply cannot carry all of their groceries through the checkout by hand or in baskets.

Others suggested the trolley ban wouldn’t be as much of an issue if the supermarket hired more staff at checkouts.

“What a stupid idea! Firstly you cut back operators on other checkouts to cut wages and save money. Secondly you spend millions promoting and installing these checkouts and now you want to stop trolleys being used in that area?” one shopper wrote in a social media post.

“I really hope that this is a massive joke.”

Coles and Woolies out of favour with Aussie shoppers

As Coles and Woolworths face fresh challenges with the ongoing needles in strawberries crisis, a new study has found shoppers are fed up with the supermarkets.

Nearly 30 per cent of the 500 Australian shoppers surveyed considered switching to a competitor as a result of the plastic bag change, the Monash University data shows.

Most of the Woolworths and Coles shoppers surveyed across the country said they would switch to the other, as a result of changes to their bag policies in Victoria, the Monash Australian Consumer Retail and Service research unit’s quarterly survey found.

“The removal of single-use plastic bags and subsequent confusion with inconsistent policy changes from both major supermarkets has created more problems than it has solved,” Mr De Leon said.

“Major supermarkets, such as Coles and Woolworths, rate reasonably lower on these key attributes since May, particularly when we see consumer backlash related to the single-use plastic bag ban and also the extension of complimentary multi-use plastic bags.”