SUPERMARKET queues are getting longer as the nation’s shoppers fume at the time it takes to get through the checkouts.
And self-service tills – designed to make shopping easier and faster, and cut supermarket costs – could be partly to blame.
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Trade magazine The Grocer found that shoppers who prefer to use the few remaining staffed tills have longer wait times and slower service.
But which of the big six supermarkets are the worst culprits?
Writer and mum of two Julie Cook visited Asda, Lidl, Morrisons, Aldi, Tesco and Sainsbury’s at the busiest times of day and timed how long it took to get through a staffed checkout with the same 12 items in her trolley.
Here, she tells Claire Dunwell which store came out top in her supermarket sweep, having marked them out of five, with five the fastest.
Morrisons
- Totton, Hants
- Speed: 4 mins, 55 seconds
- Trolley rating: 3
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THE car park is busy but because there are plenty of spaces, I’m impressed at how quickly I’m parked up and inside the store.
The aisles are bustling so before I even get to the checkouts, I’m anticipating a wait.
Three of the tills are staffed while the self-checkouts are full, and there are two trolleys ahead of me at each staffed checkout.
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I choose one of the tills at random and the queue moves relatively quickly.
The friendly and chatty cashier manages to talk and serve at the same time.
She comments on my dress and offers to help me pack my shopping.
I’m on my way as soon as she hands me the receipt.
The transaction is reasonably fast and I’m impressed with the efficient and well-mannered cashier.
Asda
- Totton, Hants
- Speed: 6 mins, 37 seconds
- Trolley rating: 3
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IT’S lunchtime but here’s no trawling around the car park looking for a trolley because Asda has plenty to go at.
When I get inside, customers are flying through the self-serve checkouts which seem to take the strain away from the four staffed checkouts.
But by the time I line up at the staffed tills, there are three trolleys in front of me and when I finally get to the front of the queue, after what feels like ages, I can hear tutting from the woman behind me and I can sense the frustration all around.
The lovely, friendly cashier tries her best to get the items through quickly but I’m disappointed at the waiting time. It’s lucky I wasn’t in a rush.
While the self-service tills might take the weight off the customers wanting to buy only a few items, there is still a lack of staffed tills open to serve customers . . . and the Totton store is probably the busiest Asda in the area.
Tesco
- Southampton
- Speed: 1 min 49 seconds
- Trolley rating: 5 (winner)
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THE Tesco superstore is huge and very busy and as I do my shopping, I dread the long wait at the checkout.
But with SIX tills open – a record for the day – I’m through in no time.
I watch as other shoppers happily load their items onto the conveyor and whizz through.
There’s a real sense of customer satisfaction.
With just one shopper ahead of me, the friendly cashier is efficient, polite and attentive while going at an impressive pace.
I pack fast as the items are through before I have a chance to open another bag.
When I pay and look at my stopwatch and see 1 minute and 49 seconds, I’m amazed.
As the Tesco slogan goes, Every Little Helps, and it definitely did during my visit.
Aldi
- Southampton
- Speed: 5 mins, 34 seconds
- Trolley rating: 3
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I GET into the store at lunchtime which, according to their peak hours on Google, is the busiest slot.
I’m a big fan of Aldi because their food is affordable and the shelves are always well stocked – and the checkouts are always pretty quick.
Reaching the tills, I feel dismayed to see only one of them is open – and with three customers already waiting to be served.
Then comes a voice over the Tannoy: “We are opening till number three.” I feel renewed hope.
Only, nothing happens, until I finally reach the front of the checkout I’m waiting at and an even longer queue starts to build behind me.
It prompts them to open another till but by that time, all my items are on the belt so it’s too late to move and I stay put.
If they had opened the other checkout faster it would have been a much quicker experience.
It doesn’t put me off shopping there again because I’m usually in and out in no time.
Lidl
- Totton, Hants
- Speed: 2 mins, 30 seconds
- Trolley rating: 4
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WHEN I arrive, the aisles are quiet, but as I’m turning from the first aisle into the second, I spot just one till open and there are four people waiting with full trolley loads.
When I get there, it’s down to three. As I take my place, another customer jostles in front of me and puts her shopping on the conveyor belt before I have a chance to object.
When it’s my turn, the cashier whizzes my shopping through and apart from a “hello” and asking me if I need a bag, there’s no small talk, which means I catch up on the lost waiting time.
I struggle to keep pace with her speed as I throw everything into the trolley, squishing my bananas – but I’m impressed by how fast I’m through.
Sainsbury’s
- Southampton
- Speed: 2 mins, 35 seconds
- Trolley rating: 5 (runner-up)
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WHEN I reach the checkout in Sainsbury’s in Lordshill, Southampton, there are just three tills open for trolley shoppers while everyone else is at the self-service section.
Despite the two customers waiting before me, the queue moves pretty fast, and before I know it, I’m at the front and being asked if I would like any bags for my shopping.
The female cashier isn’t as fast as at some at the other stores and she wasn’t especially warm towards me either.
I ask for two bags but only get one so asking for another holds me up slightly.
But still, the wait time is impressive and I’m back at my car with the shopping in the boot in less than five minutes.
Verdict
All of the supermarkets had plus points, from the roomy car park at Morrisons to the friendy cashier at Asda.
But Tesco took the medal for speed. It had the most tills open which made it easy to access a till with only one person in front of me.
The cashier was efficient, personable and friendly – which shows you don’t need to sacrifice customer service for speed.
