Supermarket: Can staff check bags?

Shopping with your own bag or backpack can easily lead to misunderstandings. Customers risk unintended legal problems.

Forget about "just a quick shopping trip". Often it ends up being more than you think. If you don't have a shopping basket or trolley to hand, you put the items in your own bag or backpack. This is not prohibited by law, but it can lead to big problems.

The reason: The action could lead to misunderstandings. If customers put the goods in their bag or backpack while shopping, this could be interpreted as theft.

The act is an act of taking something away. And an act of taking something away can be equivalent to theft, which is a criminal offense. Even if the customer intended to unpack the goods again later at the checkout and pay for them. In that case, the act could still be considered a precursor to theft, so-called attempted theft. And that is also a criminal offense.

Store detectives or supermarket employees usually only intervene when the customer is at the checkout. They check whether the customer really takes out all the goods that he or she has put in his or her bag or backpack and puts them on the checkout belt.

However, it is less problematic if customers use their own basket, which is clearly visible. In this case, the purchase intention is clearly evident. In addition, detectives and staff can see at a glance which items the customer has taken and whether they have put them all on the checkout conveyor belt.

But be careful: Customers should also follow the house rules of the supermarket and discount store. These may state that customers are not allowed to use their own bags to transport their goods. The store managers even have the right to ban large bags from the store.

It depends, explains the North Rhine-Westphalia Consumer Advice Center. "Without concrete suspicion, a bag check in a supermarket is generally not permitted," say the experts. An arbitrary bag check, however, is not permitted. "Not even if there is a sign in the store indicating that bag checks will be carried out." This would violate the customer's personal rights.

If the cashier still wants to check the bag, customers should point out their right to privacy. "If the staff still insists, you can allow the check and then complain to management," recommend the consumer advocates.

However, if there is suspicion, the employees and/or the store detective may take the customer's personal details and detain him until the police arrive. The officers may then search the suspect.