Shopping Trolley Return Etiquette

fastnbulbous on 08/03/2018 - 00:01
Last edited 08/03/2018 - 00:04

At my local shops the parents parking spot i sometimes get (legitimately) does not have a trolley bay nearby.
I thought it was reasonable that, instead of wandering further into the carpark to return it at a trolley bay, further away,, it was more useful to leave the trolley near the door of the shops. However when i tried this tonight, i got a bit of a dirty look from a passer by.

Feeling a bit self conscious, i decided to review the 10 commandments of the supermarket. Regarding the 1st commandment i was wondering if i was crossing a line!

1) Thou shall not leave your trolley in an empty parking spot.

There are two kinds of people in this world:

1) Those who return trolleys to the trolley bay and 2) Assholes.

My question is are there any reasonable alternatives to leaving your trolley somewhere other than the trolley bay, which is not an asshole move?

I'll leave the issue of when a trolley bay is overflowing, where do you put it? for another time.

Poll Options

  • 89
    Always the trolley bay
  • 2
    At my bikies friends house
  • 2
    Don't use a trolley
  • 3
    In the bush
  • 5
    In the next parking spot over
  • 6
    Near the entrance
  • 6
    On the curb
  • 1
    Return it back to the shop
  • 5
    Take it home
Food & Grocery Trolley

Comments

  • itsdougie on 08/03/2018 - 00:23
    +7

    If there is already an abandoned trolley nearby I just push mine into it and walk off. Still an (profanity) move but at least you were not the first (profanity)

    • Nugs on 08/03/2018 - 06:06
      +2

      safety in numbers

      .

  • Butt Scratcher on 08/03/2018 - 00:24

    What happened to those trolleys where you had to insert $1 or $2 coin as a deposit?

    As a kid, I'd put those trolleys back when I had a chance

    • JimmyF on 08/03/2018 - 08:35

      Its a council requirement normally, ours all have these. So trolleys ALWAYS go back to the bay.

      • Zenyatta on 08/03/2018 - 09:20
        +1

        I wish it were true. My local area is littered with coin-lock trolleys, all locked together so I can't even push them away from my front lawn anymore.

    • one man clan on 08/03/2018 - 10:36

      I hate those things and refuse to shop at places that have them (Aldi mainly). Who carries coins these days?

      • Cheap Charlie on 08/03/2018 - 11:48
        +1

        Just jam your credit card in the trolley.

    • ProBoDoBo on 08/03/2018 - 19:59

      I have a collection of foreign coins which are worth 2c in Australia so I just use them to drag the trolly home as they fit in perfectly!!

  • Almost Banned on 08/03/2018 - 00:51
    +5

    If its convenient I'll put it in the trolley bay.
    If its convenient I'll put it by the entrance.
    Sometimes the convenient thing is to put it on a path or in a spot the trolley boys can collect it and it isn't blocking anyone.
    They have trolley collectors so its not going to be there too long.

  • JIMB0 on 08/03/2018 - 01:01
    +4

    If everyone put them back half the trolley collectors would be out of a job.

    • armdrags on 08/03/2018 - 02:46
      +6

      If everyone do the right thing and criminals don't exist then everyone in law enforcement would be out of a job. If everyone always throw rubbish in the bin those in the cleaning industry would be out of a job. If everyone in this world can coexist peacefully then half the people in the army would be out of a job. What an idiotic way of thinking.

      • pennypincher98 on 08/03/2018 - 07:23
        -5

        If everyone did the right thing and criminals didn't exist.

        Define criminal. What's an offence? Sometimes the right thing to do is in fact wrong. It's what separates us from robots.
        Besides, I see regular people break several laws each day such as jaywalking, sharing/downloading copyrighted material, not crossing at the crossing. Add things like fare evasion (I'll pay you back later).

        If everyone always threw their rubbish in the bin the cleaning industry would be out of a job.

        The cleaning industry doesn't just pick up rubbish. Mould grows in damp places. Dirt gets walked in. Dust naturally settles on things. Plus you need someone to empty bins in shopping centres etc.

        What an idiotic way of thinking.

        Yeah I could say the same about yours as well.

        • Donaldhump on 08/03/2018 - 08:14
          +1

          If no shop ripped you off, then ozbargain would not exist

  • twww on 08/03/2018 - 04:53
    +5

    This one time, coming back to the car, I observed an old guy leave the trolley beside my car. Before he had a chance to get into his car I told him to take it over to the trolley bay. Surprisingly he complied. Really. It's not hard!

    • Ryanek on 08/03/2018 - 08:23
      +2

      Walk of shame.

      • KaTst3R on 08/03/2018 - 11:46

        Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame!

  • [Deactivated] on 08/03/2018 - 07:56
    +7

    I once stacked my trolley on top of the others. Some lazy person had chained his trolley to the next one (to get his coin back) but they where next to each other, instead of in each other, making it impossible for me to add my trolley to the stack and get my $2 back. So I up my trolley, turned it upside down, and stacked it on top of the others and got my $2 coin. This was the only way it would fit.

  • Donaldhump on 08/03/2018 - 08:12
    -3

    Trolley bay, but if it is 200 metres away in the wrong direction I am not walking it, so I put it over the concrete thing in front of the car or in a pos not impeding another car. Makes it easier for the trolley person anyway.

  • [Deactivated] on 08/03/2018 - 09:10

    I've often noticed that there are no convenient trolley points near parent parking. I'm guessing they think the parents are only picking up a few items and will carry them to the car in plastic bags. I've complained a couple of times through the Tell Coles feedback about this.

    • spersephone on 08/03/2018 - 11:06

      You're right, they shouldn't assume. But usually when I used to shop with my pram, I would have bags underneath my pram, and hanging off the back.

      However, there are others parked nearby that don't have prams anyway, so it's pretty rude to make the assumption that no-one will need a bay there.

  • Helmuth on 08/03/2018 - 09:12
    +1

    Didn't your parents teach you to put your stuff back where you got it from? If you're pretending to be an adult, put it back in the trolley bay.
    That being said, the trolley coin/chain systems piss me off. I paid a buck on fleabay for a wooden key that lets me unlock the coin receptacle without having to keep a $1 or $2 coin on me all the time. I still lock the trolley up again later, but it's not going to hurt me if I don't.

    • dogboy on 08/03/2018 - 09:49

      I agree those things are a pain. Who carries money on them these days?

      • try2bhelpful on 08/03/2018 - 13:37

        Woollies was giving away a a keychain with a token you could use for the trolley, you still have to connect it to get the token back but if you have the keychain on you, you have a token. We grabbed a few of them.

      • scrimshaw on 08/03/2018 - 15:14

        Maybe these shopping centers need Obike system

        1. Install an app on your phone, but you pay a one time fee of $1 to create the account and link Flybuys / WW rewards
        2. scan the trolley's barcode which unlocks the wheels
        3. do your shopping as normal
        4. when you're done with your shopping and return your trolley to the trolley bay, a NFC scanner or laser scanner identifies that the trolley is now back in the 'dock'
        5. The shopping center rewards you with supermarket loyalty points or a random free product

        Then, you will be obliged to come back to claim your free stuff and to put the trolley back where it belongs?

  • Godric on 08/03/2018 - 09:33

    A trolleys alternate purpose, BBQ

  • Wantone on 08/03/2018 - 10:05
    +2

    If everyone does the right thing by putting the trolleys back where they should be. You will make the trolley person redundant, so less jobs created.

    • Helmuth on 08/03/2018 - 10:22
      +2

      No, the trolley person moves the stack of trolleys from the bay back to the store. That's a crappy job as is; no need to make it harder.

    • boo hoo on 08/03/2018 - 10:30

      Not Correct.
      Coles run their trolley collection with their own staff.
      The Coles Services staff do cleaning of the store as well during and after hours.
      Chasing around looking for stray trolleys rather than collecting them from central pick up bays is a great time waster.

      It amazes me also that people cant differentiate between small & large trolleys so the collector has to do a "Trolley Waltz' to get them into order.

      BH

  • c64 on 08/03/2018 - 10:40

    no poll option for the local creek? that's where i seem to see them. they are not exactly cheap either

  • spersephone on 08/03/2018 - 11:04
    +1

    There are only two places that I will return the trolley to.

    1) The correct trolley bay if it is there
    2) Back into the shop, within the trolley bay - not outside, not near by, I return it to where it's meant to go.

    Anything else is simply creating extra work for someone. I see trolleys left in parking spaces, so that no-one can park there without hanging out of their spot and being forced to move the trolley (that they didn't put there!!), then having to fix up their park in the spot.

    If it's too hard for you to put the trolley back, don't use it. Shop more frequently and use bags.

  • Quantumcat on 08/03/2018 - 11:10

    I think it's fine to leave it somewhere where it isn't is someone's way (competently blocking a pedestrian path or in a car park spot etc) but where it is accessible to the trolley guy. You're paying $1 for the privilege of not having to walk it a long way away. The trolley guy can get the $1 or a local kid can return it and get $1. If they want them to always be returned they should build more bays.

    You're doing the local kids a big favour by not returning them. I remember going to the airport with a parent to pick up the other parent and having a wonderful time running all over the place with my sisters finding lost luggage trolleys and returning them for $2 each (only got $2/week pocket money so was a like a fortune)

    • spersephone on 08/03/2018 - 11:11

      Sure, but if you were to get caught, you'd be in trouble for theft. If the trolleys aren't returned, the money in them probably belongs to the supermarket, not the trolley collector, not you.

      • Quantumcat on 08/03/2018 - 11:49
        +2

        How is it theft? You're not taking them out of the car park. The money belongs to whoever returns the trolley. That's why they implement that system - to give people a monetary reward for returning them (or a monetary cost to not returning them).

        • spersephone on 08/03/2018 - 14:55

          It belongs to the person who borrowed the trolley. If they don't collect it, I believe it belongs to the supermarket, as payment for having to go and find their trolley outside the correct parking area. They're the only two parties to that money.

          Edit: fair enough if this "third person" actually goes and puts it back. But if they just add to the problem by connecting it to another rogue trolley and grab the money and leave them there, they're doing the wrong thing.

        • Quantumcat on 08/03/2018 - 20:31

          There's no rules saying you have to return your trolley, it's all just an incentives program to get most people to behave the way they want. It is much easier to deal with when you think of it like that - instead of getting worked up about people doing the wrong thing you can just look at it like a choice that the gold coin wasn't worth the walk. And the people joining two trolleys together are "beating the system" sort of. If the supermarket wants to cut down on this they need to upgrade their technology so keys bought on ebay won't work and that their trolley guys don't leave any unattached trolleys around that people can use for free and then not have to bring back. And if a lot of people are thinking it isn't worth their gold coin to return the trolley, then more trolley bays need to be installed to make it more appealing to return them (or force people to use $2 coins not $1 so they have to give up more to not return them)

          Edit: also is your first name Persephone? I've always thought that would be a really cool girl's name, but the risk would be people would always mishear her and think she said Stephanie, which could drive her bonkers. Thoughts?

      • JIMB0 on 08/03/2018 - 17:10

        The trolley collectors pocket the money. Thats why they leave the trolley bay in such a mess so you can't get your coin back.

  • tomsco on 08/03/2018 - 11:37

    Maybe getting off topic, but the local Woolies has a small inside shopping bit (maybe another 4-5 small shops). Saw someone stop just outside the outside doors, lift his bags out, leave the trolley and walk to his car.

    All I could think is that if you're not going to wheel the trolley to your car and leave it there, why even bother taking it out of the shops?

  • Fergy1987 on 08/03/2018 - 12:01
    +6

    I don't buy a bunch of groceries so I take my bags and return the trolley back to the shop - Saves the guy having to collect it from the other end of the carpark!…….or if I go outside the shop I'll put it in the trolley bay and even grab other peoples trolleys as I am going to the bay to help them out…..I mean, hero isn't a term I throw around lightly………But I am a Hero!

  • bhm133 on 08/03/2018 - 13:13
    +3

    Nice post OP. This topic has given me the ^&%$s for years. I am not perfect but always try and put the trolley back to the most convenient point. Sometimes there is a trolley bay nearby. Sometimes there isn't. In that case, I put it in the safest place, away from cars for example. I cannot stand the arsehats that fill their trolley with crap and walk it home to leave in the street (looking at you my neighbours!). It is amazing how far people will take a trolley (even with the wheel locks). The arsehats that also decide to fill a trolley with their suitcases and belongings to move also annoys me. When you take a trolley put the bloody thing back.

  • twww on 08/03/2018 - 13:48

    What goes through the mind of people who wheel a trolley home/apartment and leave it outside?

    • tomsco on 08/03/2018 - 23:31
      +3

      Probably thinking when they’re getting their next ice hit.

  • FlatEarth on 09/03/2018 - 17:59
    +1

    Actually, I love taking abandoned trolleys with $1 or $2 coins still in them and taking them to the trolley bay so I can claim my free coin.
    Please only leave trolleys with money in them thanks ;)

  • kevsta on 15/03/2018 - 12:41

    Do you still return your trolley to the trolley bay if someone is sitting in their car waiting for you to leave your car park spot or do you push it to the nearest out of the way location ?

    • spersephone on 15/03/2018 - 14:11
      +4

      Usually then I take the trolley all the way back to the shop, and perhaps stop for a coffee on the way back to the car.

  • Laziofogna on 17/03/2018 - 14:45

    I return it back only if the other trolleys are at 10m distance from my car

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