You couldn't make it up

[chrisd]

Asked by HID to pop into Sainsbury's and pick up some Benalyn cough medicine, paracetamol and some Lemsip powders, for a cold/flu she felt coming on.

I picked them up off the racks, so nothing needing a prescription or the services of a pharmacist. Went to the self check out and it wouldn't pass the first item so over came the assistant. "mmmmm " says she "you've got too many medical items" "you can only buy two and you've got three" I say "hid has a cold/flu coming and we need these three, I will put 2 through then pay and then put the third through seperately" "cant allow that as I have to ok it, and its more than my jobs worth, cos you could use them to overdose on " I explain that I am reasonably intelligent (?) and would be unlikely to choose that particular trio to try if I was planning to end it all and, in any case, I wasn't suicidal until this particular conversation had started


She continues " take it to the pharmacy and the will do it for you" after venting my views on the stupidity of this rule I toddled off to the pharmacy to be confronted by an assistant who could barely string two words together and after a long wait he finally put my items through with no question, so I asked how as an assistant he could do it when they couldn't at the checkout and the answer was "I dont know mate"!

I paid and left!


Any similar stories

 

[fundy]

Wife was ill recently, went to boots and asked for a bottle of night nurse and a pack of day nurse tablets - couldnt sell me both could only sell the small packet that had both in tablet form at a highly inflated price. Asked to put it through in 2 transactions and got a look as if Id threatened to commit murder. Bought the night nurse and told her how ridiculous it was and that Id pop back later once she wasnt there to get the tablets at which point she made it clear she'd be describing me to all her colleagues to ensure they didnt serve me - right little jobsworth!

 

[Imurg]

Madness...
You can only buy 2 x 16 packs of Paracetamol at the checkout but go to the Pharmacy and you can buy a pot of 200..
How does that work then...?
And anyway it only takes a dozen to OD so what's the point...

 

[Ethan]

Its a combination of liability fears and jobsworthness. There is no good in reasoning with them. The same applies to buying alcohol. Some supermarkets will refuse to sell you alcohol if you have a teenager with you, in case you are buying for them.

Nothing to stop you doing a circuit of the local supermarkets buying 2 x 16 each time.

The key factor with paracetemol OD is time to treatment. In my earlier medical career, I encountered a number of teenagers who took what they thought was a non-lethal dose, and were not suicidal, but managed it anyway due to delay in seeking medical help.

 

[HawkeyeMS]

Having IBS as I do, i keep Imodium instants handy most of the time. Went into the chemist once to get some to take on holiday and asked for 2 packs of 12 tablets (you can only get the 6 packs off the shelf and have to ask for 12 packs) and was told I could only buy 1 pack of 12, but I could take 4 packs of 6 of the shelf and buy them

 

[Fader]

Had the same issue myself the other day, tried buying day and night nurse as got a poxy cold and was refused service as I might try to top myself! Because trying to clear a cold using recommended cold and flu remedies is clearly the water all want to do it.

Rules gone mad when you can buy it from the pharmacy in the same shop though.

 

[Jon321]

No common sense at all. Always found this in tesco. I buy hay fever tablets in the summer and am only allowed 2 boxes at one. 14 tablets in total. I think it would take a lot more than that to finish me off

 

[chrisd]

Well at least I know it's not just me they pick on!

 

[Fish]

I bought, or attempted to, the Night Nurse and the Day Nurse liquid bottles at the chemist. The girl behind the counter asked if I had used them before. I stated I had used the Night Nurse but not the other, she then wouldn't let me have it and said I shouldn't use them together! I said, I wasn't going to use them together, hence their names "Night & Day". She said if I was going to be awkward would I leave, so I did and bought them both in the supermarket without any confrontation.

WTF

 

[Hobbit]

Mrs Hobbit is a checkout chick. She often has to apply what she considers to be stupid rules, and then get the abuse for applying the rule. Could she sneak them through? The till would flag up the transaction and she'd be looking for another job...

Nanny state and EU rules - complain to your MP.

 

[Master-putter]

Last year when i was 15 i went over the road to my local shop, and went to buy some halls throat sweets, told i wan't old enough and they refused to sell them to me. They told me that i had to be 16 to buy them myself. Ridiculous!

 

[arnieboy]

I would never blame the counter/checkout staff, they don't make the rules but they would swing for it if they didn't follow them.

 

[upsidedown]

Gawd i'm dreading coming back to the UK..... here in NZ can buy paracetamol and Ibuprofen in packs of 100 and have on occasion both two lots together .

 

[full_throttle]

I would never blame the counter/checkout staff, they don't make the rules but they would swing for it if they didn't follow them.

I agree with this ^^^

 

[chrisd]

In my example I went to great lengths to re assure the checkout girl that I wasn't blaming her personally ....... but, if you dont make some sort of protest against ridiculous interpretations of the law then you might as well have your brain removed!

I really do object to being treated like a 5 year old when I go shopping but I do realise that it was Mr Sainsbury's fault not the girls

 

[need_my_wedge]

You can buy large packs of paracetamol or Ibuprofen in Costco - each contains 16 or 20 boxes......but only if you have a company account, not an individual one. No policing though, I'm an individual with a company card, they never question my once a year purchase of paracetamol....