A UK supermarket chain is firing its self-checkout stations and bringing back real people as cashiers

Retailers are revising their self-checkout strategies.

Dominick Reuter/Insider

• UK supermarket chain Booths is doing away with self-checkout stations in almost all its stores.
• The decision comes as customers complain about self-checkout stations being slow and impersonal.
• Even in the US, major retailers like Walmart and Costco are revising self-checkout strategies.

Booths, a high-end supermarket chain in the UK, is swapping out its self-checkout stations with manned cashiers in the majority of its stores. 

The chain will retain self-checkout stations in only two out of its 28 stores, according to the BBC.   

The decision comes after customers have repeatedly complained about the chain's self-scan machines being slow, unreliable, and impersonal, Nigel Murray,  managing director for Booths, told BBC Radio Lancashire. 

"We like to talk to people and we're really proud that we're moving largely to a place where our customers are served by people, by human beings, so rather than artificial intelligence, we're going for actual intelligence," he told the radio station.

He also noted that customers can get confused when checking out loose items, like fruits, vegetables, or baked goods, because the chain's self-out stations usually require some sort of visual verification for the items. "Some customers don't know one different apple versus another for example," he said. 

And alcohol purchases still require an attendant to come and verify the age of the purchaser, he explained. 

Booths is believed to be the first UK supermarket chain that's doing away with self-checkout stations, according to the BBC. But it's one among a growing number of retailers like Wamart and Costco that are revising their self-checkout strategies.

But for some US retailers, issues like theft have driven the self-checkout reckoning. Walmart said in September that it was scrapping self-checkout lanes in at least three stores in Albuquerque, New Mexico — a decision that came after both employees and customers complained about an increase in theft. Meanwhile, Costco has been cracking down on unauthorized card-sharing by having employees ask shoppers to show them their membership cards and photos in self-checkout lanes. 

Americans still seem to say that they prefer self-checkout stations. Around 66% of respondents prefer a self-service kiosk over a checkout lane managed by a person, according to a survey of 1,000 respondents by PlayUSA. By eliminating those small interactions between customers and cashiers, self-checkout stations could also be contributing to a broader loneliness epidemic. 

Booths did not immediately respond to Insider's request for a comment. 

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