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Do you have to show your receipt at Walmart?
In this article, you’ll learn about:
Let’s dig in.
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No, you do not have to show your receipt at Walmart.
Greeters will ask you to see your receipt when you’re leaving.
But they are really asking for permission to search your cart.
You are not legally required to show your receipt.
But, there are 5 states where you are legally required to, like:
In these states, not showing your receipt is probable cause for shoplifting.
Walmart employees in these 5 states can:
In the other 45 states, you’re not breaking the law.
Lawsuits against Walmart claim that receipt checking:
Walmart receipt checkers are able to call the police on you.
But they cannot call the police if there is no probable cause of:
Walmart employees have to adhere to the law.
They are not legally allowed to call the cops without probable cause.
And they cannot detain you against your will if you haven’t stolen anything.
This only pertains to people who have not shoplifted.
If you have shoplifted:
In most states, you don’t have to show your receipt at Walmart.
But, there are 5 states where it’s illegal.
And not showing your receipt is probable cause for shoplifting.
These 5 states where you have to show your receipt are:
There really are not any consequences.
You’re not legally obligated to show your receipt.
Walmart greeters cannot call the police without probable cause.
Let’s say that they accuse you of shoplifting.
They need to have probable cause to make that claim.
In that case, they can:
But, let’s say that you’re someone:
In this case, you won’t get in trouble for not showing a receipt.
They may hassle you, make a big deal, and claim you have to.
But there is not any legal obligation that you show them.
In fact, they cannot enforce anything on you.
But, they can ban you from the store if you don’t cooperate.
Walmart is known for checking the receipts of shoppers.
They will ask for receipts to prevent:
Walmart associates are legally allowed to ask for a receipt.
In this section, you’ll learn about:
Walmart’s policy on checking receipts is that they:
Let’s look at Walmart’s policies and laws.
And scenarios where Walmart employees cannot ask you to show your receipt.
They cannot ask you to show your receipt if you:
Here is a list of prohibited behavior from Walmart employees.
They are not allowed to:
Yes, it is legal for Walmart to check your receipt.
This allows Walmart to prevent shoplifting and theft.
There is no law requiring you to show your receipt to Walmart.
Not showing your receipt is not probable cause for theft.
Walmart cannot detain you for not showing your receipt.
But Walmart can ban you from the store if you don’t cooperate.
Walmart’s only leverage is the ability to ban you from the store.
Shopkeeper’s privilege gives Walmart the right to detain you.
But only for a reasonable length of time.
Basically, long enough to investigate the suspected shoplifting.
This protects Walmart from theft and fraud.
It gives Walmart the right to:
Shopkeeper’s privilege does not give Walmart the right to:
Shopkeeper’s privilege only applies to suspected shoplifters.
Walmart must have probable cause that you have shoplifted.
To use shopkeeper’s privilege, Walmart has to:
They can also stop you if the theft sensors go off.
Basically, the only place that Walmart has any rights is:
Even with the shopkeeper’s privilege, you have consumer rights.
As a consumer at Walmart, you have the right to:
Note that this is only if you haven’t stolen anything.
If you’ve committed theft or fraud, you lose these rights.
Under consumer rights, Walmart:
Walmart store employees can only detain someone in-store:
Walmart store employees cannot use force to detain you.
If they do, you may claim false imprisonment.
And false imprisonment is a civil violation you can sue them for.
False imprisonment is when someone is:
This includes Walmart:
(Not showing your receipt is not proof of theft.)
False imprisonment by Walmart is a:
Let’s say that a Walmart associate falsely imprisons you.
And they don’t have any proof of theft.
They are the one who gets charged with false imprisonment.
Walmart does not get charged with false imprisonment.
Yes, Walmart can detain you in the store for suspected shoplifting.
They can only detain you for a reasonable amount of time.
Basically, until they can get law enforcement to show up.
They will call the police to come and press charges against you.
All they can do is:
If the police get involved, you should cooperate.
Show them your receipt to prove that you bought the items.
There have been several Walmart receipt-checking lawsuits.
They allege that Walmart broke federal and state laws like:
Many of these plaintiffs argue that Walmart receipt checks are:
Walmart stands its ground on receipt checking, though.
They claim they have a right to protect their property.
Some of the Walmart receipt-checking lawsuits are:
Yes, Walmart can look up receipts.
There is a receipt lookup on your Walmart.com account.
This will give you a digital copy of your receipt.
Or the Walmart associate can look up receipts for you.
This is true even if you used self-checkout machines.
To issue you a refund, they will:
It’s a condition of your membership to show your receipt at:
They will terminate your membership if you don’t show your receipt.
If you are facing a conviction of shoplifting, fill out the form on this page.
Our criminal defense attorneys have the experience you need to defend your rights.
This way, you don’t:
You deserve a fair trial in the criminal justice system.
We can provide you with that.
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