(I am called back by the pharmacist to assist with a verbally abusive customer. The more the lady yells, the louder her kid cries. None of the other customers in line behind her can get to the register. )
Me: “How may I help you?”
Lady: “It’s about time you got back here to straighten this out! This s***-head won’t give me a medicine spoon!”
Pharmacist: “I’m sorry, I’ve tried to explain that we are all out of the complimentary spoons.”
Lady: “If my daughter ends up getting an overdose of her medicine, I’m going to sue you!”
(I roll my eyes and walk over to a display of dosing spoons, selecting one we sell for 99 cents.)
Me: “Ma’am, I’m sorry we don’t have any of the free ones. Let me buy this one for you.”
Lady: “What? Do I look like a welfare mother to you? I don’t need your f****** charity!”
Pharmacist: “You don’t need the spoon either. Those are chewable tablets.”
(We’re selling tons of over-the-counter, store-brand medications at buy one, get one free. I ring up a lady who has two bottles of cough syrup with her. She keeps a stern eye on the cash register monitor as I check them through.)
Lady: “That’s not right.”
Me: “What isn’t?”
Lady: “The coupon says buy one at $6.99, get the other one free.”
Me: “Precisely. You’re getting both of these for $6.99.”
Lady: “But one’s ringing up as $3.50 and the other at $3.49.”
Me: “That’s correct. The register divides these differences automatically.”
Lady: *growing fidgety* “But that’s not what the coupon says.”
Me:*after a pause* “Well, $3.50 plus $3.49 is $6.99.”
Lady: “So this is how you scam customers!”
Me: “Ma’am, I’m pretty certain that we here at [Drugstore Chain] do not scam our customers when even basic math can rule out any differences.”
Lady: “I only want one. Put this other one back; I don’t want it. I’m not paying an extra $3.49 for this. The ad said buy one, get one free, and I’m not getting that one for free.”
Me: “Ma’am, I gave you the exact amount of change that is on the receipt.”
Customer: “BULLS***! YOU SHORTCHANGED ME YOU STUPID LITTLE F***! I DEMAND THAT YOU GIVE ME MY MONEY BACK RIGHT NOW!”
Me: “I’m sorry, ma’am. I will go get a manager for you right away.”
Customer: “F*** YOU, YOU LITTLE PIECE OH S***! I WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS. YOU WILL PAY!”
(At this point the customer began to storm down the aisles. She lit a cigarette and began setting merchandise on fire. Afterward, she ran from the store because she realized that she had in fact had gotten the right amount of change!)
This story is part of the Customers-Overreacting roundup!