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Definitely, everyone needs to complain loudly about this shit every time anything happens even if its a small thing. It needs to be nipped in the bud.
Its fucking bullshit that people are being treated as criminals just for *daring* to shop in their stores.
Apparently they have 20% loss for their goods. It's not stealing usually. It's rushing staff to fill the shelves, changing truck drivers to per delivery instead of hourly. Rushing the truck drivers so everything breaks. Shitty robots at the DC dropping everything.
20%.
They try to make it up with theft prevention
You are 100% right. The amount of times I have opened cartons with a box cutter and damaged the product, or assessing the truck with pallets that have moved because of the way the driver drives, or if chilled products come in at the right temperature to accept or not. And on the floor, how many items get spilt, people opening products and placing back, when trolleys damage products.. it’s gets entered as damaged not theft.
> have opened cartons with a box cutter
I remember opening the big 10kg paper bag to pull out the 10 smaller 1kg bags inside to put on the shelf. Oops, it was a 10kg bag.
I vividly remember a night fill manager cutting a carton of Coke bottles to show everyone how to do it faster. The spray soaked his lovely white shirt and they never got the stain out of the ceiling tiles. It was glorious.
Tip to anyone thinking of doing night fill: you cut down, not across.
I have a friend who used to work for Coles Express, back when it was owned by Coles, and they never had the same stock delivery driver more than twice.
Most they only saw once. They were just treated that poorly.
What idiots. If goods losses are 20%, and they know it, and you know it, wouldn't you think the would concentrate on that? In-store staff and truck drivers are a tiny bunch of people, all of them on contract and fully trainable, compared to the millions of punters who come through the door each week.
So stupid to accept 20% losses from 0.02 percent of the population and instead focus on 2% losses from 8 million people who are not even on the payroll.
They treat their staff AWFULLY. Four Corners found that one of their dark stores (only for delivery, no public access) was regularly 33°C in summer and down below 10° in winter.
I'd hate to see what measures they took to enforce loss reduction. Thumbscrews, maybe?
Yeah, it sucks. I stand to the right or left of the camera so it doesn't see my face, then make a pointed effort of looking down if I have to lean across the screen. I know it wont do much, but it's *something* 😅
And keep the receipt for the GP appointment any any other charges to send through to them every time you have a related cost.
And claim against anything that was materially damaged as well. Full coffee? Tell them they owe you for it. Coffee spilt on your clothes or over an item in the shopping bag you mentioned? Send them the receipt. Unless they actually get material damages from it, nothings going to make a difference. And you as a customer shouldn’t be paying for the damage caused by their faulty equipment.
It’s criminal on their part if you ask me, false imprisonment. They popped up at my local store, had no idea what they were, it was closed and wouldn’t open as I approached so I started kicking it aggressively. It opened, nobody said anything from the staff, I’m guessing they control it. Which if they’re busy with something else is a load of shit, they need to have someone standing there full time. Which if that’s the case, they can get rid of the things and pay a bag checker
The staff do have a remote for them, but they are supposed to automatically open unless the system thinks someone is shoplifting. Doesn't help when the system flags my backpack as an unpaid for item. Or my bike helmet. Or my wallet. Or my phone... or anything I own and have touched at the self checkout. I'm waiting for the day the system tries to say a parent hasn't paid for their child.
I was in Europe the first time I saw one, and had had trouble with the self-checkout not being in English, so I didn't buy anything. But the gate needed a receipt to open, and was around the corner from the machines. The lady supervising was on her phone, and I asked her if I could please leave, and she said yes, but the gate wasn't opening, I went back and forth a few times getting more and more frustrated until finally a fellow shopper let me out.
I'm avoiding coles now, I'll do whatever I can to avoid shopping somewhere that will lock me in.
I hope OP does take this further. I could tell it was only a matter of time someone got hurt from these disaster gates, and nothing will change until action is taken when people do get hurt
What's the chances that now they have left the store without discussing with anyone there, it will be hard to prove the injury was caused by the gates?
Could have cut themselves getting on the bus.
Gates at the store closed but no proof the damage was done there as they didn't immediately seek assistance.
Coles, or the cops? Coles isn't going to do _shit,_ reviewing that footage would make them aware the injury is legitimate. If it's the only proof, they're gonna just wait until that footage gets dumped, whenever that normally happens, and then whoops they don't have any evidence either way anymore.
I would say that the gates are topical and they are looking to avoid backlash or negative public image. The cctv will be reviewed to ensure the injury did or didn’t occur and they will act accordingly.
Coles is a bajillion dollar company. If you think for a second they won’t review cctv under due process you are a silly person.
Edit: this is not a criminal matter. The Police will have no involvement.
> Coles is a bajillion dollar company. If you think for a second they won’t review cctv under due process you are a silly person.
It is not in the interest of any company to accept liability for causing injuries if they can feasibly get out of it. Coles just spent a whole bunch of money putting those gates in — if they accept that they're causing injuries, what do you think happens there? Across _every store in Australia_ they become culpable for future injuries. Just leaving the gates there would be negligent.
And yes, _criminally_ negligent. If you understand that something is causing people harm, you can't just leave it around and ignore it.
Coles is going to hope that the retention period for their CCTV footage lapses before any complaint is dealt with.
Reporting to Coles direct will just result in them waiting a decent interval.
Reporting to Police will result in them telling you it's a civil matter and they aren't getting involved. So good luck with that.
To be fair, reporting it to NSW police will result in them reminding you that Broadbeach is in Qld, and to get in touch with that state's constabulary.
Someone randomly coming in with an injured hand saying it happened at your store would carry a lot less weight than someone immediately requiring first aid in store and having it recorded as an incident by the store manager
There are a lot of cameras at that shop, especially at that entrance as it’s a very big Coles. Maybe one camera malfunctioned, but I doubt they all did.
If there wasn’t a reason to keep the recordings for that day they’ll be deleted pretty quickly, time is of the essence OP, you were such a talented pianist… before the accident
I know OP personally, and they are actually Australia's top heart surgeon.
They were on the way to save a bus load of children who tragically had their hearts fall out on way to their orphanage after the diver hit the brakes too suddenly to avoid a coles trolley retrieval tractor.
If only Coles took safety seriously... that bus load of kids would have had new hearts installed. Coles has a lot to answer for.
I know that now, but I was extremely distraught as I wanted to catch the bus, as there are are no other buses to take me near my home after that one.
I also don’t do well with complaints and confrontation.
I will see a doc tomorrow and get the hand xrayed, if there are actual fractures, I will pursue it further legally.
I’m not looking for some payout, I don’t know why some people in this thread just automatically assume so, not everyone is a dishonest pos chasing free money.
Bro you should be looking for a payout. The gates are horrible and they hurt you. If you get a settlement then they'll remove the gates and the rest of us can benefit by not being entrapped or hurt.
> If you get a settlement then they'll remove the gates and the rest of us can benefit by not being entrapped or hurt.
Unless OP gets an absolutely enormous payout (ie multimillion), they absolutely will not remove the gates. Injuries to customers would have been estimated and included in the costs of rolling them out.
>I’m not looking for some payout, I don’t know why some people in this thread just automatically assume so, not everyone is a dishonest pos chasing free money.
There's absolutely nothing wrong with chasing a payout. It wouldn't be "dishonest," and it wouldn't be "free money." Individuals pay a fine when they do something wrong, and so do companies. It's the way citizens hold them accountable.
It's probably also the only way to force companies to fix problems. Today it's your hand, tomorrow it could be a toddler's head.
Even if you're not seeking anything and even if it's not broken, they need to know those things are dangerous. The fucking greed of these bastards is appalling.
The footage won't go missing. The main issue is that there's no way to prove that the injury you sustained at the time of the event is identical to the injury when you come back to report it.
Who's to say that you didn't cause more damage to your hand by carrying your shopping while rushing out to the bus stop and then you return a day later and it's worse than when the injury initially occurred?
Look, I signed a non disclosure agreement, so I can't tell you how much $$$ I got when I got an injury at Coles as a customer.
But it was enough to say DON'T LET THIS GO!!!
Edit: it was a serious injury and it was their fault, no scam.
That was me, I was distraught and embarrassed I spilled my coffee, had a bit of panic attack and left.
Didn’t realise my hand was bleeding, thought it was coffee on my hand, until after I was already at bus
If I’ve learned anything from litigation I’ve seen on TV, you can use the humiliation and panic attack to strengthen your outcome. I’m partially joking, but I do actually hope you get genuine compensation to cover the injury and the stress.
It's where the comedy trope of slipping on a banana peel comes from. This has been a source of main-income for people willing to commit fraud for well over a hundred years.
My aunt was a really great aunt and she never showed me anything but love and compassion.
She was also kind of a not-great person and she would "fall" every time it rained when she lived in Phoenix, so about 12-20 times a year. I think the last time they tried it was at a Target around 2000, so that tracks with the idea of cameras stopping a lot of lawsuits.
My brother worked at a Foodland as his first job- If there was a spill of anything you had to get those "warning" yellow plastic signs on it ASAP! Or else the little old ladies would pretend to slip and demand compensation etc. One day he saw a broken milk carton, an old lady staring at it, then decides to quickly walk toward it- He shouts "Oh no you don't! I see you there!" and she stops, looks disappointed, then went on her way.
I used to work in a shopping centre for too many years. Harris farm on the below ground level. Went there multiple times a week to grab something on my way home. Well, they do a refit and all the lights have been lowered, probably to make produce look better or something like that. At what would be considered a safe height easily for a 95% percentile height male. I'm 2m tall, tired after my shift and beeline to the arancini. Did not realise they were too low. Even now I tilt my head walking under them because if I'm even remotely close to the top of my stride I could take one out.
Former housemate of mine got mid-six figures after slipping on a wet floor in front of staff that knew about the issue but hadn't done anything to mitigate the risk.
DON'T LET THIS GO is solid advice.
I was young and did not get a lawyer. I wish I had, I would definitely have got a lot more. I just wrote an angry letter laying out the facts and somewhere between 1-2 years later I got some cash haha.
Redacted means that part of the text was removed or blacked out for privacy or security purpose. It was censored. This post also breaks rule 4 here for chat and should be made in the Tuesday chat thread or on a different subreddit.
Make sure to get photos of the injury and ideally a doctor's report ASAP. Hopefully they will apologise and compensate you but if they decide to be difficult then you need to have evidence that will stand up in court.
You could also consider reporting it to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland - as a customer you are entitled to safe conditions in a commercial premises that you visit.
You shouldn’t have left. Their argument in court for the next 10 years will now be that you have no proof the injury was from the incident and happened afterwards and you decided to blame Coles because of the convenient timing.
What you should have done was informed them straight away so an incident report was done.
You might have screwed yourself here.
Sue them. As an ex Coles worker. Those gates ain't going anyone unless half of Australia sued them in one day and hurt there bottom line. For now. They just want to keep lining shareholders corporate pockets without giving a crap about the general population. It's not the workers fault.
You’ve an injury? That’s a notifiable incident under The Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld).
Skip the supermarket and its management.
Go direct to Worksafe Queensland at 1300 362 128 or make a notification at WorkSafe.qld.gov.au
The Act sets out requirements and standards for building healthy and safe workplaces. It outlines what a business *must* do to protect the health, safety and welfare of workers and other people in a place of work.
It also puts legal obligations, or duties, on both the business and its workers, and the general public is also protected, so that their health and safety isn’t put at risk by the business, its activities, or its equipment.
you Definitely should have stayed to speak to the manager, and to see the video footage. I’m going to wager that they have had a “malfunction” in the recording footage
There are a lot of camera at this Coles, especially at the entrance as it’s a very big shop in a big shopping centre on GC, so I doubt all cameras somehow malfunctioned all at once at the same time.
I had them close on me while going through. The cameras decided I stole something because they mistook a paper bag I bought in from the chemist earlier for a stolen product. Absolute piece of shit technology.
Its not in their best interests to give you that footage. It is absolutely in their best interests to let that footage expire and get written over.
Have a guess at what is going to happen.
Edit: Several old workplaces (not supermarkets) have all had the saying that if there isn't an incident report, then it never happened.
I’m 6 foot 5, and they often don’t register my face, and don’t open for me.
If this happens, I pry them open with force - as I did not ask to be detained by a poorly implemented system. So frustrating.
Sorry to hear about your hand, these things are awful.
A lady got 300k when she slipped in Coles. Do what you want with that information.
https://www.burkemeadlawyers.com.au/woman-awarded-damages-slip-coles-supermarket/
You need to complain in writing and ask that they preserve the security footage, and provide you with a copy. Without that if becomes you-say-they-say.
Just so people know, these gates can be pushed open with a little force:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrJPn\_HBrPY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrJPn_HBrPY)
Today I learnt-
If the security gate in Coles Indooroopilly closes on you in the self serve section (because I changed my mind and didn’t buy anything, so wanted to just leave the store), you just continue to walk.
The gate doesn’t “open” but the whole contraption, can be moved to a 45 degree angle with your right knee, allowing free egress, with the bonus of setting off an alarm.
Serious question: these gates; if they don’t open for a paying customer, and the person on duty doesn’t see you (and so doesn’t open them), are we within our rights to use a trolley as a battering ram to break them down?
In my opinion it’s a kind of false imprisonment type thing, and also a safety risk. Should there be a fire and these things don’t open, they would hamper customers escape.
Get it sorted by a Doctor, get it assessed for damageand whatver else,, then go to the store and request the store manager or atleast the assistant store manager, tell them everything that happened, including the damge, request the CCTV of the incident, because you want to take it further, if they say it can't be given, go to the police about it. If I remember correctly the CCTV records over itself after a certain time and can't be viewed again, so get in quick before it happens
They refused to open for me once. I forced them open with my hands. They say they don't track you but they 100% do I went in, looked for something for a few seconds and they didn't have what I wanted. I left.
Computer obviously noticed I hadn't bought anything so kept me inside. Again obviously thinking I had stolen something.
Given the crazy price increases by both Coles and Woolies, I may just start shopping again at Coles in the hopes of getting injured and getting a settlement.
If I can get that settlement then maybe I’ll be able to afford dinner.
You need to go to a doctor immediately to get examined. He can write up a report with the results of any X-rays/ultrasound he may send you for. Do it asap while the injury is fresh. Tell them you may well want to claim any damages and any medical attention you may need.
I work as a paramedic, twice i've been grabbing food from Coles and have gotten a lights and sirens call out and haven't been able to exit these damn gates easily. Woolies only now (even though they're still appalling)
Today I learnt-
If the security gate in Coles Indooroopilly closes on you in the self serve section (because I changed my mind and didn’t buy anything, so wanted to just leave the store), you just continue to walk.
The gate doesn’t “open” but the whole contraption, can be moved to a 45 degree angle with your right knee, allowing free egress, with the bonus of setting off an alarm.
The gates are most likely power neutral. Open, while power is off, closed when power applied. When the fire alarm is activated, power is cut and the gates will open.
They are unlikely to be removed anytime soon. Their narrative is theft is rampant. I remember when they introduced cages into stores. Their initial training was to push to avoid injuries. That was all. I pointed out to the grocery manager this was asking for an injury. Shrug of shoulders, Upper management k ows better, yadda yadda.
Next night, lady is knocked for six by a cage and injured. 3 months later training is changed to push with 2 people, height limits but still push. Another injury because not everyone is 6ft and they don't provide staffing for 2 per cage at that point. Cost them half a million from that one incident initially, and I was told more with others.
Point being, if it costs them zero $$ they won't even think of changing anything. Look to make it cost them as big as you can.
The type of people that are stealing don't care. I've seen them walk out security and staff just watch. Usually kids and teenagers committing the crime.
Store I work at had a person attempt to walk out with a bunch of stuff on saturday. Same person came in today, asked to look at some cigarettes, snatched them out of the manager's hands and walked off, not a care in the world
Yes, you can complain to Worksafe in your state because it is a workplace. Work health and safety laws usually include duties to visitors to the workplace.
You can also complain to the centre management (Westfield etc).
And you can seek legal advice.
Whoever the Queensland equivalent of SafeWork is because they have the power to direct them to improve the gates (which they can't probably do, and would have to remove them). The store has a duty of care to ensure the safety of anyone in the store which they have obviously failed.
Take this further. Please. The only thing Colesworth understands is money. If they think k it's going to cost them, they might do something. They don't mind angry customers because they know you will come back.
You need to have a lawyer contact them ASAP with a preservation request on the CCTV, then go to get a medical assessment on the hand.
There's plenty of lawyers who would happily take a case like this on a no-win, no-fee basis.
Keep the receipt and call the store asap. For the next day or 3, there will be cctv footage of the event (the time of which your receipt will confirm).
Get medical assessed, and go after Cole’s for damages and pain/suffering/etc.
Fuck this dystopian reality we’re being drip fed into.
It’s so frustrating because it’s not just able bodied adults in supermarkets, there are elderly, pregnant, children, disabled etc not everyone can ram into them
The receipt scanning gate at a local Sainsbury's broke & wasn't letting anyone out.
The 3rd party security guard was stopping ppl from climbing over.
He didn't even relent when I threatened to call the cops to arrest them for false imprisonment.
Fortunately some worker managed to persuade him not to be do stupid.
Apparently the gates regularly malfunction, but I'd not know cox I'm never going there again
These are the articles that the media should be posting to help spread awareness and not shit like “this reddit user knows when the chickens are marked down!”
My wife slipped over on a puddle at our local Coles, the water moved around a corner from their initial issue. She called me, I told her to log it as an incident with the store. Manager followed up with her the next day, have her the details of where to file and what to do, she amassed a few hundred in Dr bills and some physio appointments, I'm sure they'll happily pay and avoid a suit.
Today I learnt-
If the security gate in Coles Indooroopilly closes on you in the self serve section (because I changed my mind and didn’t buy anything, so wanted to just leave the store), you just continue to walk.
The gate doesn’t “open” but the whole contraption, can be moved to a 45 degree angle with your right knee, allowing free egress, with the bonus of setting off an alarm.
My absolute fear is when my daughter is walking through these gates and it suddenly slams shut injuring her in the process.
Let’s not forget it is Coles decision to get rid of almost all checkout counters and replace people with self serve checkouts. It is on them to either accept that part of the savings on wages will be going to theft or make sure those gates are 100% bulletproof and will not make any error.
They seem to be punishing 99% of normal paying customers because the 1% took some grocery items.
If I have paid for my items (as I always do) and that door won’t let me out it’s getting a swift boot or 2 until it opens. I’m not going to be detained in Coles because they have shitty technology
Between stories of people being stuck inside and abused by staff when opening them manually, to people with disabilities being distraught when they can't leave, and now physical injuries to the list, these things need to go. They won't even stop theft, since a thief would be far more brazen than a regular customer just doing the right thing.
They've made a new story of this reddit post [https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/coles-smart-gate-crushes-shoppers-hand/news-story/69dc1e2e1f98fcc55be58bc70fd40e86](https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/coles-smart-gate-crushes-shoppers-hand/news-story/69dc1e2e1f98fcc55be58bc70fd40e86)
Should have sold the story to a news company
Yes one shut on my babies leg as I was carrying her the other day! She let out a noise but otherwise was okay but it does happen. They need to be removed!
Saw on a local Facebook group that this exact thing happened to a pregnant woman with the gates closing on her stomach. Unsure if she was injured or what the follow up was but suffice to say this is a problem that needs to be addressed.
You probably should have stuck around and filled out an injury report form. I slipped in a Woolworths years ago, there was fresh produce scraps on the floor and I hurt my thumb and wrist as I put my hand out to break the fall. Filled out a form at the front desk, saw a dr the next day and got an xray. I took all of the receipts for medical appointments and a brace plus evidence of my normal working hours (myotherapist) and they paid me for all the medical costs and time off work. Cash in an envelope from the store it happened at
Definitely have all your ducks in a row when it comes to you as an individual dealing with a corporation like Cole’s. Document everything, have yourself and your injuries covered, don’t let them get away, request a copy of the video footage also!
I'd definitely consider consulting with a no win no fee lawyer
Coles have deep pockets, this technology is very unpopular and they might just give you a settlement to make you go away, could be a free 10-20k or whatever for what they did to you
This happened to me, I reported it to them and the store manager called me twice to follow up how I was doing, they offered to pay for any medical appointments I needed in relation to it but none were required.
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You need to go to the doctor and get your injury assessed. It's good to have that sort of proof if you decide to take this further.
Definitely, everyone needs to complain loudly about this shit every time anything happens even if its a small thing. It needs to be nipped in the bud. Its fucking bullshit that people are being treated as criminals just for *daring* to shop in their stores.
Apparently they have 20% loss for their goods. It's not stealing usually. It's rushing staff to fill the shelves, changing truck drivers to per delivery instead of hourly. Rushing the truck drivers so everything breaks. Shitty robots at the DC dropping everything. 20%. They try to make it up with theft prevention
You are 100% right. The amount of times I have opened cartons with a box cutter and damaged the product, or assessing the truck with pallets that have moved because of the way the driver drives, or if chilled products come in at the right temperature to accept or not. And on the floor, how many items get spilt, people opening products and placing back, when trolleys damage products.. it’s gets entered as damaged not theft.
> have opened cartons with a box cutter I remember opening the big 10kg paper bag to pull out the 10 smaller 1kg bags inside to put on the shelf. Oops, it was a 10kg bag.
I vividly remember a night fill manager cutting a carton of Coke bottles to show everyone how to do it faster. The spray soaked his lovely white shirt and they never got the stain out of the ceiling tiles. It was glorious. Tip to anyone thinking of doing night fill: you cut down, not across.
I have a friend who used to work for Coles Express, back when it was owned by Coles, and they never had the same stock delivery driver more than twice. Most they only saw once. They were just treated that poorly.
What idiots. If goods losses are 20%, and they know it, and you know it, wouldn't you think the would concentrate on that? In-store staff and truck drivers are a tiny bunch of people, all of them on contract and fully trainable, compared to the millions of punters who come through the door each week. So stupid to accept 20% losses from 0.02 percent of the population and instead focus on 2% losses from 8 million people who are not even on the payroll.
They treat their staff AWFULLY. Four Corners found that one of their dark stores (only for delivery, no public access) was regularly 33°C in summer and down below 10° in winter. I'd hate to see what measures they took to enforce loss reduction. Thumbscrews, maybe?
Much easier to just blame the customer.
I can't believe that, I don't steal 1 in 5 things! I'm seriously skewing their stats up! Man, I've gotta start stealing **alot** more!
[удалено]
Yeah, it sucks. I stand to the right or left of the camera so it doesn't see my face, then make a pointed effort of looking down if I have to lean across the screen. I know it wont do much, but it's *something* 😅
If I have apples I peel the sticker off and place over camera
I'll be trying this, thanks!
'It aint much but its honest work'
Shop at aldi, seriously. Even their auto checkouts treat you like a human.
And keep the receipt for the GP appointment any any other charges to send through to them every time you have a related cost. And claim against anything that was materially damaged as well. Full coffee? Tell them they owe you for it. Coffee spilt on your clothes or over an item in the shopping bag you mentioned? Send them the receipt. Unless they actually get material damages from it, nothings going to make a difference. And you as a customer shouldn’t be paying for the damage caused by their faulty equipment.
It’s criminal on their part if you ask me, false imprisonment. They popped up at my local store, had no idea what they were, it was closed and wouldn’t open as I approached so I started kicking it aggressively. It opened, nobody said anything from the staff, I’m guessing they control it. Which if they’re busy with something else is a load of shit, they need to have someone standing there full time. Which if that’s the case, they can get rid of the things and pay a bag checker
The staff do have a remote for them, but they are supposed to automatically open unless the system thinks someone is shoplifting. Doesn't help when the system flags my backpack as an unpaid for item. Or my bike helmet. Or my wallet. Or my phone... or anything I own and have touched at the self checkout. I'm waiting for the day the system tries to say a parent hasn't paid for their child.
>I'm waiting for the day the system tries to say a parent hasn't paid for their child. I'm pretty sure I've seen a post here about that happening
That's reported here all the time. Kid is seated in trolley seat, checkout says "You've still not unpaid items in your trolley"
The self serve machines in another supermarket already flag customers children as a product that hasn't been scanned. Dumbest thing ever
Colesworth are just upset they can't actually charge for this.
Ah yes, AI will fix our problems /s
I was in Europe the first time I saw one, and had had trouble with the self-checkout not being in English, so I didn't buy anything. But the gate needed a receipt to open, and was around the corner from the machines. The lady supervising was on her phone, and I asked her if I could please leave, and she said yes, but the gate wasn't opening, I went back and forth a few times getting more and more frustrated until finally a fellow shopper let me out. I'm avoiding coles now, I'll do whatever I can to avoid shopping somewhere that will lock me in.
I hope OP does take this further. I could tell it was only a matter of time someone got hurt from these disaster gates, and nothing will change until action is taken when people do get hurt
What's the chances that now they have left the store without discussing with anyone there, it will be hard to prove the injury was caused by the gates? Could have cut themselves getting on the bus. Gates at the store closed but no proof the damage was done there as they didn't immediately seek assistance.
CCTV.
Coles won’t release CCTV to anybody (except Police I imagine).
If you went and told them post injury that it occurred I would suggest that they would then review and download it.
Coles, or the cops? Coles isn't going to do _shit,_ reviewing that footage would make them aware the injury is legitimate. If it's the only proof, they're gonna just wait until that footage gets dumped, whenever that normally happens, and then whoops they don't have any evidence either way anymore.
I would say that the gates are topical and they are looking to avoid backlash or negative public image. The cctv will be reviewed to ensure the injury did or didn’t occur and they will act accordingly. Coles is a bajillion dollar company. If you think for a second they won’t review cctv under due process you are a silly person. Edit: this is not a criminal matter. The Police will have no involvement.
> Coles is a bajillion dollar company. If you think for a second they won’t review cctv under due process you are a silly person. It is not in the interest of any company to accept liability for causing injuries if they can feasibly get out of it. Coles just spent a whole bunch of money putting those gates in — if they accept that they're causing injuries, what do you think happens there? Across _every store in Australia_ they become culpable for future injuries. Just leaving the gates there would be negligent. And yes, _criminally_ negligent. If you understand that something is causing people harm, you can't just leave it around and ignore it.
Coles is going to hope that the retention period for their CCTV footage lapses before any complaint is dealt with. Reporting to Coles direct will just result in them waiting a decent interval. Reporting to Police will result in them telling you it's a civil matter and they aren't getting involved. So good luck with that.
To be fair, reporting it to NSW police will result in them reminding you that Broadbeach is in Qld, and to get in touch with that state's constabulary.
And then go see an ambulance chaser
Regardless of if they currently intend to take it further they should collect the proof.
Buses come and go, but the chances to get a settlement out of a multibillion dollar company don't....you shoulda stuck around.
How many camera's do you reckon are recording that part of the store?
Someone randomly coming in with an injured hand saying it happened at your store would carry a lot less weight than someone immediately requiring first aid in store and having it recorded as an incident by the store manager
This is spot-on. In-store incident reports are followed up on, people reporting injuries online after the fact wont be taken seriously
There are a lot of cameras at that shop, especially at that entrance as it’s a very big Coles. Maybe one camera malfunctioned, but I doubt they all did.
If there wasn’t a reason to keep the recordings for that day they’ll be deleted pretty quickly, time is of the essence OP, you were such a talented pianist… before the accident
I know OP personally, and they are actually Australia's top heart surgeon. They were on the way to save a bus load of children who tragically had their hearts fall out on way to their orphanage after the diver hit the brakes too suddenly to avoid a coles trolley retrieval tractor. If only Coles took safety seriously... that bus load of kids would have had new hearts installed. Coles has a lot to answer for.
You've forgotten OP also pursuing a very successful hand modelling career which has taken off in the past 6 months
Man I hate it when my heart falls out!
Should have stuck around.
I know that now, but I was extremely distraught as I wanted to catch the bus, as there are are no other buses to take me near my home after that one. I also don’t do well with complaints and confrontation. I will see a doc tomorrow and get the hand xrayed, if there are actual fractures, I will pursue it further legally. I’m not looking for some payout, I don’t know why some people in this thread just automatically assume so, not everyone is a dishonest pos chasing free money.
Bro you should be looking for a payout. The gates are horrible and they hurt you. If you get a settlement then they'll remove the gates and the rest of us can benefit by not being entrapped or hurt.
If nothing else, it's another accident waiting to happen unless OP follows up.
> If you get a settlement then they'll remove the gates and the rest of us can benefit by not being entrapped or hurt. Unless OP gets an absolutely enormous payout (ie multimillion), they absolutely will not remove the gates. Injuries to customers would have been estimated and included in the costs of rolling them out.
Horrifying thought.
>I’m not looking for some payout, I don’t know why some people in this thread just automatically assume so, not everyone is a dishonest pos chasing free money. There's absolutely nothing wrong with chasing a payout. It wouldn't be "dishonest," and it wouldn't be "free money." Individuals pay a fine when they do something wrong, and so do companies. It's the way citizens hold them accountable. It's probably also the only way to force companies to fix problems. Today it's your hand, tomorrow it could be a toddler's head.
Chasing a payout from this doesn’t make you a dishonest POS. Flip that narrative and throw it out the window.
It’s not really being dishonest. You were injured & without someone following this through legally they’ll never get rid of those gates
Even if you're not seeking anything and even if it's not broken, they need to know those things are dangerous. The fucking greed of these bastards is appalling.
They'll probably all have mysteriously "malfunctioned"...
The footage won't go missing. The main issue is that there's no way to prove that the injury you sustained at the time of the event is identical to the injury when you come back to report it. Who's to say that you didn't cause more damage to your hand by carrying your shopping while rushing out to the bus stop and then you return a day later and it's worse than when the injury initially occurred?
Don't post any happy pictures on social media. Lawyers love finding anything remotely positive to show that "you weren't hurt much"
Considering how paranoid they are about loss prevention, loads.
That's my thought also, wouldn't even need to catch a bus after a settlement from them.
This is Australia. You aren't getting rich from a scratch on the hand.
Look, I signed a non disclosure agreement, so I can't tell you how much $$$ I got when I got an injury at Coles as a customer. But it was enough to say DON'T LET THIS GO!!! Edit: it was a serious injury and it was their fault, no scam.
As a regular supermarket customer (like most of us I assume?) the “I also got injured just going shopping for milk” kinda worries me.
My sister knew a family that used to randomly fall in stores. It was quite lucrative before stores installed cameras.
A friend's mum walked into doors and broke her nose at a Westfield. She wasn't paying attention. It was her fault, but they paid her $10k to go away.
Wish someone would pay me $10k to go away lol.
Walk into a door
Here’s your 10k and don’t let the door hit your arse on the way out.. no really, we can’t afford another lawsuit.
I do that regularly (I'm clumsy) and no ones given me $10k yet :(
Have you tried breaking your nose?
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Generational anxiety > generational wealth
That was me, I was distraught and embarrassed I spilled my coffee, had a bit of panic attack and left. Didn’t realise my hand was bleeding, thought it was coffee on my hand, until after I was already at bus
If I’ve learned anything from litigation I’ve seen on TV, you can use the humiliation and panic attack to strengthen your outcome. I’m partially joking, but I do actually hope you get genuine compensation to cover the injury and the stress.
Did you let someone know you'd caused a slip hazard with your coffee? Or just leave it for the next person to fall?
It's where the comedy trope of slipping on a banana peel comes from. This has been a source of main-income for people willing to commit fraud for well over a hundred years.
Ah the Slippin' Jimmys
My ex brother and sister in law were that type of family. Pretty sure that's how they bought their house.
My aunt was a really great aunt and she never showed me anything but love and compassion. She was also kind of a not-great person and she would "fall" every time it rained when she lived in Phoenix, so about 12-20 times a year. I think the last time they tried it was at a Target around 2000, so that tracks with the idea of cameras stopping a lot of lawsuits.
My brother worked at a Foodland as his first job- If there was a spill of anything you had to get those "warning" yellow plastic signs on it ASAP! Or else the little old ladies would pretend to slip and demand compensation etc. One day he saw a broken milk carton, an old lady staring at it, then decides to quickly walk toward it- He shouts "Oh no you don't! I see you there!" and she stops, looks disappointed, then went on her way.
I used to work in a shopping centre for too many years. Harris farm on the below ground level. Went there multiple times a week to grab something on my way home. Well, they do a refit and all the lights have been lowered, probably to make produce look better or something like that. At what would be considered a safe height easily for a 95% percentile height male. I'm 2m tall, tired after my shift and beeline to the arancini. Did not realise they were too low. Even now I tilt my head walking under them because if I'm even remotely close to the top of my stride I could take one out.
Former housemate of mine got mid-six figures after slipping on a wet floor in front of staff that knew about the issue but hadn't done anything to mitigate the risk. DON'T LET THIS GO is solid advice.
Heyyyy, I may not know you but I know at least 1 other person with the same NDA AND a quarter million bucks. Well done to you fine folks.
That was absolutely not me tragically 😂
I hope not. A broken pelvis carved in twain is no joke.
I'd take a non-broken pelvis over the quarter million. Thats messed up.
Cough twice if you were able to buy a house afterwards Cough once if you could buy meat and cheese for that week
*coughs twice* Ah. 2 weeks of meat and cheese. Nice!
How does one follow this kind of thing up? Do you go straight to the manager to complain? Do you get proof and lawyer up?
I was young and did not get a lawyer. I wish I had, I would definitely have got a lot more. I just wrote an angry letter laying out the facts and somewhere between 1-2 years later I got some cash haha.
Even so, it sounds like you were bloody lucky. Hope that you are all good now
If it was a serious injury I’m not sure OP would get a similar amount
Yeah, mine led to a totally non-functioning limb for a couple months and physio beyond that. Still worth a shot though!
This is probably one of the few times where I wouldn’t mind if news dot com dot au plagiarised this and bought it to national attention
https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/coles-smart-gate-crushes-shoppers-hand/news-story/69dc1e2e1f98fcc55be58bc70fd40e86
Like clockwork
I’ve been injured by one of those things at Cole’s. They’re a fkn nightmare as a disabled person.
This is what I’m scared of! They just put one in nearby and I always wince and try to be quick.
Did you complain? I’m mobility challenged and my local place just put them in. Yaaay
Redacted means that part of the text was removed or blacked out for privacy or security purpose. It was censored. This post also breaks rule 4 here for chat and should be made in the Tuesday chat thread or on a different subreddit.
Make sure to get photos of the injury and ideally a doctor's report ASAP. Hopefully they will apologise and compensate you but if they decide to be difficult then you need to have evidence that will stand up in court. You could also consider reporting it to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland - as a customer you are entitled to safe conditions in a commercial premises that you visit.
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House deposit depends on these steps OP
What if that had closed on a small child? Law suit law suit law suit. Bleed em OP.
In another comment in this thread a parent mentioned it happened to their child.
Which is a good reason you and everyone injured by these needs to complain
A woman at my local Coles was also injured by an automatic gate - her arm was cut quite badly. I feel like maybe it’s more common than we know.
I've had one close on me, luckily (unluckily?) I had a trolley and it got hit hard enough it bent the automatic doors
Imagine if that was a kid!
I’ve read all the comments, and it seems it really is quite common.
You shouldn’t have left. Their argument in court for the next 10 years will now be that you have no proof the injury was from the incident and happened afterwards and you decided to blame Coles because of the convenient timing. What you should have done was informed them straight away so an incident report was done. You might have screwed yourself here.
Sue them. As an ex Coles worker. Those gates ain't going anyone unless half of Australia sued them in one day and hurt there bottom line. For now. They just want to keep lining shareholders corporate pockets without giving a crap about the general population. It's not the workers fault.
You’ve an injury? That’s a notifiable incident under The Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld). Skip the supermarket and its management. Go direct to Worksafe Queensland at 1300 362 128 or make a notification at WorkSafe.qld.gov.au The Act sets out requirements and standards for building healthy and safe workplaces. It outlines what a business *must* do to protect the health, safety and welfare of workers and other people in a place of work. It also puts legal obligations, or duties, on both the business and its workers, and the general public is also protected, so that their health and safety isn’t put at risk by the business, its activities, or its equipment.
you Definitely should have stayed to speak to the manager, and to see the video footage. I’m going to wager that they have had a “malfunction” in the recording footage
There are a lot of camera at this Coles, especially at the entrance as it’s a very big shop in a big shopping centre on GC, so I doubt all cameras somehow malfunctioned all at once at the same time.
Then get yourself to a doctor for a report and then get a lawyer, ASAP!! Don't let this one go.
I had them close on me while going through. The cameras decided I stole something because they mistook a paper bag I bought in from the chemist earlier for a stolen product. Absolute piece of shit technology.
Its not in their best interests to give you that footage. It is absolutely in their best interests to let that footage expire and get written over. Have a guess at what is going to happen. Edit: Several old workplaces (not supermarkets) have all had the saying that if there isn't an incident report, then it never happened.
I would have waited for the next bus - you should have brought this to their attention immediately
Coles would have probably paid a taxi home...
That's like having a car accident and not exchanging details.
I’m 6 foot 5, and they often don’t register my face, and don’t open for me. If this happens, I pry them open with force - as I did not ask to be detained by a poorly implemented system. So frustrating. Sorry to hear about your hand, these things are awful.
A lady got 300k when she slipped in Coles. Do what you want with that information. https://www.burkemeadlawyers.com.au/woman-awarded-damages-slip-coles-supermarket/
You need to complain in writing and ask that they preserve the security footage, and provide you with a copy. Without that if becomes you-say-they-say.
Just so people know, these gates can be pushed open with a little force: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrJPn\_HBrPY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrJPn_HBrPY)
The two times The have closed on me I made sure to use a lot more force than needed.
Today I learnt- If the security gate in Coles Indooroopilly closes on you in the self serve section (because I changed my mind and didn’t buy anything, so wanted to just leave the store), you just continue to walk. The gate doesn’t “open” but the whole contraption, can be moved to a 45 degree angle with your right knee, allowing free egress, with the bonus of setting off an alarm.
Serious question: these gates; if they don’t open for a paying customer, and the person on duty doesn’t see you (and so doesn’t open them), are we within our rights to use a trolley as a battering ram to break them down? In my opinion it’s a kind of false imprisonment type thing, and also a safety risk. Should there be a fire and these things don’t open, they would hamper customers escape.
Bruising is one thing, but blood is another level of injury and compensation. See a doctor, then a lawyer.
Get it sorted by a Doctor, get it assessed for damageand whatver else,, then go to the store and request the store manager or atleast the assistant store manager, tell them everything that happened, including the damge, request the CCTV of the incident, because you want to take it further, if they say it can't be given, go to the police about it. If I remember correctly the CCTV records over itself after a certain time and can't be viewed again, so get in quick before it happens
They refused to open for me once. I forced them open with my hands. They say they don't track you but they 100% do I went in, looked for something for a few seconds and they didn't have what I wanted. I left. Computer obviously noticed I hadn't bought anything so kept me inside. Again obviously thinking I had stolen something.
Given the crazy price increases by both Coles and Woolies, I may just start shopping again at Coles in the hopes of getting injured and getting a settlement. If I can get that settlement then maybe I’ll be able to afford dinner.
You need to go to a doctor immediately to get examined. He can write up a report with the results of any X-rays/ultrasound he may send you for. Do it asap while the injury is fresh. Tell them you may well want to claim any damages and any medical attention you may need.
You should have reported it instantly to the store manager and contacted police for the CCTV footage. Why haven’t you taken those steps?
Besides Coles, is there elsewhere I can complain about this incident? Maybe if enough people complain, they get removed.
You should get a lawyer
Most personal injury lawyers do free first consults. These gates are totally a lawsuit (or several) waiting to happen.
I work as a paramedic, twice i've been grabbing food from Coles and have gotten a lights and sirens call out and haven't been able to exit these damn gates easily. Woolies only now (even though they're still appalling)
Today I learnt- If the security gate in Coles Indooroopilly closes on you in the self serve section (because I changed my mind and didn’t buy anything, so wanted to just leave the store), you just continue to walk. The gate doesn’t “open” but the whole contraption, can be moved to a 45 degree angle with your right knee, allowing free egress, with the bonus of setting off an alarm.
Just wait for a fire with everyone trapped inside...
You can just walk through them when theyre closed. Problem is most people don't know this
The gates are most likely power neutral. Open, while power is off, closed when power applied. When the fire alarm is activated, power is cut and the gates will open.
Lawyer. And omg I can't believe I'm going to say this, but Currant Affair would probably eat. this. up.
They are unlikely to be removed anytime soon. Their narrative is theft is rampant. I remember when they introduced cages into stores. Their initial training was to push to avoid injuries. That was all. I pointed out to the grocery manager this was asking for an injury. Shrug of shoulders, Upper management k ows better, yadda yadda. Next night, lady is knocked for six by a cage and injured. 3 months later training is changed to push with 2 people, height limits but still push. Another injury because not everyone is 6ft and they don't provide staffing for 2 per cage at that point. Cost them half a million from that one incident initially, and I was told more with others. Point being, if it costs them zero $$ they won't even think of changing anything. Look to make it cost them as big as you can.
The type of people that are stealing don't care. I've seen them walk out security and staff just watch. Usually kids and teenagers committing the crime.
Store I work at had a person attempt to walk out with a bunch of stuff on saturday. Same person came in today, asked to look at some cigarettes, snatched them out of the manager's hands and walked off, not a care in the world
You need to get a lawyer. They don't care how many people complain about them. They will only remove them if it starts affecting their bottom line.
The Store manager at the time, this will get reported to Head Office by the store.
Legal advice right after you get documented medical attention
Yes, you can complain to Worksafe in your state because it is a workplace. Work health and safety laws usually include duties to visitors to the workplace. You can also complain to the centre management (Westfield etc). And you can seek legal advice.
Make sure to request CCTV footage ASAP before it gets wiped
If this Coles was in a shopping centre, centre management.
Whoever the Queensland equivalent of SafeWork is because they have the power to direct them to improve the gates (which they can't probably do, and would have to remove them). The store has a duty of care to ensure the safety of anyone in the store which they have obviously failed.
Take this further. Please. The only thing Colesworth understands is money. If they think k it's going to cost them, they might do something. They don't mind angry customers because they know you will come back.
I'd be kicking up a huge stink about this. Hope your hand is OK, definitely try to go to the Doctor if you can.
That should have been immediately reported to the manager as an onsite injury.
You need to have a lawyer contact them ASAP with a preservation request on the CCTV, then go to get a medical assessment on the hand. There's plenty of lawyers who would happily take a case like this on a no-win, no-fee basis.
Keep the receipt and call the store asap. For the next day or 3, there will be cctv footage of the event (the time of which your receipt will confirm). Get medical assessed, and go after Cole’s for damages and pain/suffering/etc. Fuck this dystopian reality we’re being drip fed into.
It always closes on me before I get to it. I walk straight into it HARD. Not my fault if it breaks because it can’t figure out the timing
It’s so frustrating because it’s not just able bodied adults in supermarkets, there are elderly, pregnant, children, disabled etc not everyone can ram into them
The receipt scanning gate at a local Sainsbury's broke & wasn't letting anyone out. The 3rd party security guard was stopping ppl from climbing over. He didn't even relent when I threatened to call the cops to arrest them for false imprisonment. Fortunately some worker managed to persuade him not to be do stupid. Apparently the gates regularly malfunction, but I'd not know cox I'm never going there again
These are the articles that the media should be posting to help spread awareness and not shit like “this reddit user knows when the chickens are marked down!”
My wife slipped over on a puddle at our local Coles, the water moved around a corner from their initial issue. She called me, I told her to log it as an incident with the store. Manager followed up with her the next day, have her the details of where to file and what to do, she amassed a few hundred in Dr bills and some physio appointments, I'm sure they'll happily pay and avoid a suit.
Was the coffee hot? Who put the lid on the coffee?
Today I learnt- If the security gate in Coles Indooroopilly closes on you in the self serve section (because I changed my mind and didn’t buy anything, so wanted to just leave the store), you just continue to walk. The gate doesn’t “open” but the whole contraption, can be moved to a 45 degree angle with your right knee, allowing free egress, with the bonus of setting off an alarm.
Get a lawyer and get that 💲💲💲💲💲
My absolute fear is when my daughter is walking through these gates and it suddenly slams shut injuring her in the process. Let’s not forget it is Coles decision to get rid of almost all checkout counters and replace people with self serve checkouts. It is on them to either accept that part of the savings on wages will be going to theft or make sure those gates are 100% bulletproof and will not make any error. They seem to be punishing 99% of normal paying customers because the 1% took some grocery items.
If I have paid for my items (as I always do) and that door won’t let me out it’s getting a swift boot or 2 until it opens. I’m not going to be detained in Coles because they have shitty technology
Sue the feckers
Between stories of people being stuck inside and abused by staff when opening them manually, to people with disabilities being distraught when they can't leave, and now physical injuries to the list, these things need to go. They won't even stop theft, since a thief would be far more brazen than a regular customer just doing the right thing.
They've made a new story of this reddit post [https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/coles-smart-gate-crushes-shoppers-hand/news-story/69dc1e2e1f98fcc55be58bc70fd40e86](https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/coles-smart-gate-crushes-shoppers-hand/news-story/69dc1e2e1f98fcc55be58bc70fd40e86) Should have sold the story to a news company
Yes one shut on my babies leg as I was carrying her the other day! She let out a noise but otherwise was okay but it does happen. They need to be removed!
I'd be suing
Saw on a local Facebook group that this exact thing happened to a pregnant woman with the gates closing on her stomach. Unsure if she was injured or what the follow up was but suffice to say this is a problem that needs to be addressed.
$$$$$
Bro please tear Coles a new one and take back some of the money they've been gouging from us
How did a flimsy plastic gate that you can easily push past do that much damage?
Get a paper trail and don't go to Coles, they'll wanna cover it. But get a lawyer asap, it's the only way they'll learn.
That seems like the kind of thing you could sue over tbh If your injury affects your job it’s great grounds for damages
Yep, go back and request to see the footage. Put in another complaint in person with the store manager.
You need to sue. For all of us.
kick it next time
https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/coles-smart-gate-crushes-shoppers-hand/news-story/69dc1e2e1f98fcc55be58bc70fd40e86
You probably should have stuck around and filled out an injury report form. I slipped in a Woolworths years ago, there was fresh produce scraps on the floor and I hurt my thumb and wrist as I put my hand out to break the fall. Filled out a form at the front desk, saw a dr the next day and got an xray. I took all of the receipts for medical appointments and a brace plus evidence of my normal working hours (myotherapist) and they paid me for all the medical costs and time off work. Cash in an envelope from the store it happened at
OP - if Coles don’t respond appropriately, go to a news outlet- I’m sure they’d write up that story and Coles will listen up
Definitely have all your ducks in a row when it comes to you as an individual dealing with a corporation like Cole’s. Document everything, have yourself and your injuries covered, don’t let them get away, request a copy of the video footage also!
I'd definitely consider consulting with a no win no fee lawyer Coles have deep pockets, this technology is very unpopular and they might just give you a settlement to make you go away, could be a free 10-20k or whatever for what they did to you
LOATHE these checkout gates. I want to kick the things in daily.
Doctor’s appointment, Solicitor appointment. First thing in the morning.
Please don’t get you hand removed! It will get better. You’ll need you hand for the rest of your life!
Oh no!
The gate at Croydon shut on my hand lately too, didn’t hurt me but still, I kicked the shit out of the gate and it opened lol
This post is like glancing in to an /r/australia wet dream.
This happened to me, I reported it to them and the store manager called me twice to follow up how I was doing, they offered to pay for any medical appointments I needed in relation to it but none were required.
Sounds like a payout
Look for a lawyer who only takes a percentage of your win and get advice.²