Walmart, Target Changing Self-Checkout Rules: What To Know In NH

NEW HAMPSHIRE — If you shop and use self-checkout registers at Target and Walmart stores in New Hampshire, be prepared for some changes as the retailers and others fight a multi-million-dollar theft problem.

Minneapolis-based Target has placed a 10-item limit on the number of items customers can scan at its honor system self-checkout registers, effective Sunday at nearly all of its 2,000 stores. Walmart also has implemented self-scan item limits at some of its more than 10,500 stores nationwide.

Target has 10 stores in New Hampshire, including:

Concord

80 Damante Dr, Concord, NH 03301-5759

Hooksett

100 Quality Dr, Hooksett, NH 03106-2651

Bedford

220 S River Rd, Bedford, NH 03110-6819

Salem Broadway

203 S Broadway, Salem, NH 03079-3311

Nashua

310 Daniel Webster Hwy, Nashua, NH 03060-5730

Greenland

1450 Greenland Rd, Greenland, NH 03840-2438

Keene

46 Ash Brook Rd, Keene, NH 03431-5918

West Lebanon Main Street

200 S Main St, Unit 24, West Lebanon, NH 03784-2014

Walmart’s 26 stores in New Hampshire include:

Amherst Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #179685 State Route 101a, Amherst, NH 03031

Epping Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #353535 Fresh River Rd, Epping, NH 03042

Hooksett Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #16983 Commerce Dr, Hooksett, NH 03106

Manchester Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #2399725 Gold St, Manchester, NH 03103

Plymouth Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #2758683 Tenney Mountain Hwy, Plymouth, NH 03264

Salem Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #2142326 N Broadway, Salem, NH 03079

West Lebanon Store

Walmart #2138285 Plainfield Rd, West Lebanon, NH 03784

Claremont Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #197514 Bowen St, Claremont, NH 03743

Gilford Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #26391458 Lake Shore Rd, Gilford, NH 03249

Hudson Store

Walmart #1785254 Lowell Rd, Hudson, NH 03051

Walmart Supercenter #1762700 Lafayette Rd, Seabrook, NH 03874

Woodsville Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #43894901 Dartmouth College Hwy, Woodsville, NH 03785

Concord Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #2055344 Loudon Rd, Concord, NH 03301

Gorham Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #2634561 Main St, Gorham, NH 03581

Keene Store

Walmart #3549350 Winchester St, Keene, NH 03431

North Conway Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #214046 N South Rd, North Conway, NH 03860

Rindge Store

Walmart #2057750 Us Route 202, Rindge, NH 03461

Somersworth Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #174959 Waltons Way, Somersworth, NH 03878

Derry Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #175311 Ashleigh Drive, Derry, NH 03038

Hinsdale Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #1907724 Brattleboro Rd, Hinsdale, NH 03451

Littleton Store

Walmart #2681615 Meadow St, Littleton, NH 03561

Plaistow Store

Walmart #193058 Plaistow Rd, Plaistow, NH 03865

Rochester Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #2330116 Farmington Rd, Rochester, NH 03867

Tilton Supercenter

Walmart Supercenter #236933 Sherwood Drive, Tilton, NH 03276

Target said its self-checkout lanes during the pandemic were popular with customers who wanted to socially distance, but surveys since have shown customers prefer a more traditional retail experience. Individual stores will have the flexibility to open staffed lanes or set self-checkout hours that fit their customers’ needs, the retailer said.

Walmart customers who want to self-scan can enroll in the Scan & Go program, offered exclusively to Walmart+ customers. Enrollment in the customer loyalty program costs $12.95 or $98 a year, according to the retailer’s website.

Dollar General has placed limits at thousands of its stores, including 300 with the highest shoplifting rates, where the option has been entirely eliminated. To identify those stores with high retail theft, the company used artificial intelligence to analyze hundreds of thousands of purchases at self-checkout lanes, CNN reported. CEO Todd Vasos said in a call with analysts Thursday the changes are expected to have a “positive impact on shrink,” a term mentioned 37 times on the call.

Self-checkout is a popular option among U.S. consumers, according to a survey by NCR Voyix survey of 1,133 Americans. About 43 percent overall said they prefer to scan and bag their items themselves. The option is especially popular among consumers ages 18 to 44 who like the speed, shorter lines and privacy of a self-scan lane.

Another survey of 2,000 U.S. consumers by LendingTree found 69 percent think they make it easier to steal, and 15 percent admitted they had stolen items using the system.

Even law-abiding customers can be tempted to cheat at self-checkout lanes, Christopher Andrews, an associated professor and chair of sociology at Drew University and author of “The Overworked Consumer: Self-Checkouts, Supermarkets and the Do-It-Yourself Economy,” told The Associated Press late last year.

He said the technology makes it easier for customers to scan every other item or input codes for a cheaper item. But they could also make honest mistakes that affect stores’ bottom lines, he said.

Andrews told The AP he doesn’t expect the self-checkout system to disappear entirely from America’s retailers.