Hello everyone,

Is anyone else experiencing this?

I usually leave my orange shopping basket on the left-hand metal surface of the checkout station (with a slightly guilty conscience) because I have the impression that the whole process runs much more smoothly this way.

Otherwise, I look for the basket rack / the large stack with the orange shopping basket in one hand and my now full shopping bag in the other, and stand in the way of the other customers who want to leave the store (as the basket rack is usually towards the exit, and the self-checkout staff are therefore jammed there).

The Migros employees in the self-checkout area are generally extremely helpful and attentive, and always make the rounds and clear the baskets that have been left behind. I have the impression that this works much more smoothly, but I have a certain inhibition about leaving "my stuff" just like that and possibly giving the impression that I take it for granted that the employees will clear it away behind me and that I am treating them in a downward manner.

(Of course, I throw the receipt away myself, and possibly also that of the person in front of me. Even if I have to sort it into one of those fiddly letter slot waste garbage cans? it would be ideal if I could choose on the checkout screen that I don't want a receipt. This may not be possible due to random checks, but on the other hand it should be possible to simply display the last purchase by employees in the system).

Perhaps this is only a problem in the stores I visit frequently (Bern, Bahnhof and Marktgasse) due to the architecture, but I have the impression that this could be solved more cheaply:

• Customers should simply leave the baskets on the metal shelf, the next customer can put their basket in the previous one (they can be easily stacked).
• If a pile gets too big, an employee makes the rounds and collects the baskets, and then there is one person who briefly deposits a whole pile of baskets, not X customers who simultaneously search for the basket rack like headless chickens and stand in each other's way?
• It would also be good to have a sign saying that the basket should be left where it is (like in hotels, for example: throw a terry towel on the floor if it is to be washed.

In conclusion, I must say that I am otherwise extremely satisfied with the self-checkout. For me, this is by far the best innovation of the last ten years, so my comments are definitely "complaining at a high level".

With this in mind: clear communication and mutual respect, then this process might work even better than it already does.