Can you get in mild legal trouble over this?

Okay, yesterday me and a friend of mine were at Super Wal-Mart. We wanted to check the price of this one shirt, but couldn't get the price scanner to work. I suggested that we ask someone working there to check if the scanner was functioning properly. My friend, though, said that we shouldn't do that because if it turns out the scanner wasn't broken, we could be given a small fine of $20-$50 for wasting their time. He said that alerting personnel of a nonexistent problem (Even if your intentions are good) is considered a Class E misdemeanor, and that many stores and restaurants have such policies in place to deter people from wasting the staff's time by reporting problems when there are none to be found.

I was curious, just how long have policies like this been around? I've never heard of this type of rule before yesterday.

Sounds like bulltrout

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Originally Posted by rubah

Sounds like bulltit

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Super Wal-Mart

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:|

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Originally Posted by Dr. Casey

He said that alerting personnel of a nonexistent problem (Even if your intentions are good) is considered a Class E misdemeanor, and that many stores and restaurants have such policies in place to deter people from wasting the staff's time by reporting problems when there are none to be found.

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Last I checked stores don't make laws. Maybe there's some sort of idiotic by-law in your area about it, but I'd say smurf it and ask anyway. Let them try to fine you for asking a simple question. Frankly, I doubt any store employee would be enough of an asshole to waste their time trying to get $50 out of you that they'll never see even if your friends story were true, which frankly, it probably isn't. More likely your friend is either messing with you or they're the most gullible person alive and you should try exploiting them for money.

Your friend is a moron for suggesting something like that exists. Of course it doesn't, so you should be good to ask an employee anything that concerns you. They are there to help customers when a problem arises.

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Originally Posted by Dr. Casey

Okay, yesterday me and a friend of mine were at Super Wal-Mart. We wanted to check the price of this one shirt, but couldn't get the price scanner to work. I suggested that we ask someone working there to check if the scanner was functioning properly. My friend, though, said that we shouldn't do that because if it turns out the scanner wasn't broken, we could be given a small fine of $20-$50 for wasting their time. He said that alerting personnel of a nonexistent problem (Even if your intentions are good) is considered a Class E misdemeanor, and that many stores and restaurants have such policies in place to deter people from wasting the staff's time by reporting problems when there are none to be found.

I was curious, just how long have policies like this been around? I've never heard of this type of rule before yesterday.

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Broski, I've been in retail for ten years, including good long stints at Target, Kmart, and other "big box" stores, and I have never in my life heard of anything like this. I don't think you have anything to worry about.

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Originally Posted by fierytempest

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Originally Posted by rubah

Sounds like bulltit

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I think if such things were real, many people wouldn't hate their retail jobs.

i want to punch your friend for making me facepalm so hard.

Getting in legal trouble for asking how much a shirt costs? Are you seriously asking us this?

It wasn't because he was asking how much the shirt cost, but that the scanner wasn't functioning properly.

Honestly, they probably want to know what so they can get it fixed.

Your friend was lying. The policies of most major retailers encourage customers to ask workers about stupid trout.

Okay, we all agree that "law" is non-existent, and I also have no idea how that person got the idea it was a law.

I must admit, as someone who spent many years in middle management retail hell, it sounds nice.

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Originally Posted by Dr. Casey

He said that alerting personnel of a nonexistent problem (Even if your intentions are good) is considered a Class E misdemeanor, and that many stores and restaurants have such policies in place to deter people from wasting the staff's time by reporting problems when there are none to be found.

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1. Store policies do no create laws.

2. Stores cannot make you pay for anything unless you actually cost them money. Asking employees for help, when such help is part of their job, is not costing them money.

3. Your friend may have been confusing that situation with one where a customer falsely claims something is wrong with a product in order to extort money from the company (e.g., "there's a finger in my chili!"). That is, in fact, illegal. And also nothing like your situation.

I'm not even going to explain why that makes no sense. Plus, other people in the thread have pretty much explained why it's not true.

Your friend strikes me as a bit of a compulsive liar.

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Originally Posted by fierytempest

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Originally Posted by rubah

Sounds like bulltit

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Hey guys did you know the word "gullible" isn't in the dictionary?

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Originally Posted by Shlup

Hey guys did you know the word "gullible" isn't in wikipedia?

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Fixed that for you~

Shlup's comment didn't make me curious, but Pike's did, so now I'm trying not to look on wikipeida for gullible.

If such a law existed I know a lot of people I went to high school with who owe a lot of fine money. :p

Asking for help in a shop? You sick bastard... People who do things like that are just the lowest of the low. There's a reason why death row is filled with scum like this.

One guy had the cheek to ask an employee at a hardware store to "show him where the carpet cleaner was".

Quite rightly, this man was taken away immediately and beheaded, disemboweled and then set fire to...

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Originally Posted by Bubbaforever

One guy had the cheek to ask an employee at a hardware store to "show him where the carpet cleaner was"...

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I got arrested for saying almost same thing, but they thought I was trying to pick up a prostitute or something.

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Originally Posted by Hypoallergenic Cactuar

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Originally Posted by fierytempest

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Originally Posted by rubah

Sounds like bulltit

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I wont add to whats already been said but did you try to scan something else to see if it was a problem with the scanner or the tag?

I can tell you OP such fines or laws do not exist. Even big chain stores like Wal-mart do not have the power to impose what is basically a by-law upon it's customers. The only way such a law could exist is if it was made a by-law in your district or county which I yet again doubt. Plus enforcement of such a fine would be close to impossible given that there would need to be a clear definition of what constitutes a waste of time. For example, say you are a new customer coming into a supermarket & you're looking for a carton of milk. You ask a member of staff where the dairy section of the store is but it turns out if you had of looked 2 metres to the right of the shop assistant you would of seen the dairy section. Now to a shop assistant who has been working all day dealing with customers this seems like a total waste of time but to you the customer who is only setting foot in the store for the very first time it is a simple enquiry. So where would the distinction be drawn? In a consumer driven market a definition based on that of a potential over worked under paid shop assistant isn't going to hold a lot of water.

Aside from the legal stuff though OP did you know if you say "gullible" really fast it begins to sound like "oranges"