‘Excuse me, Aaron?’: Atlanta man ‘accidentally’ signs up for Walmart+. He uses Scan and Go—then a worker steps in
A Walmart customer in Atlanta, Georgia, realizes he signed up for Walmart+ and decides to try the retailer’s Scan and Go feature. However, a worker berates him for following the instructions on the app.
In a video with over 398,000 views, TikToker and Attorney Cody Randall (@atlcody) walks through Walmart with a cart of purchases. When he opens his Walmart app, he realizes he had unknowingly signed up for Walmart+.
He decides to try the Walmart+ Scan and Go feature to save some time at checkout.
Why did a Walmart worker stop him at self-checkout?
The Scan and Go feature lets Walmart+ members scan their items in the mobile app as they shop. Then they can pay on their phone and scan a QR code at the register.
However, his first attempt at Scan and Go didn’t go as planned.
“Tell me why I got yelled at. I packed up all my groceries, I went over there, I scanned my [QR], and while I’m checking out, a gentleman comes up to me,” Randall says. The Walmart worker calls him by name and chastises him for using the self-checkout lane to scan his QR without “explicit” permission.
“He goes, ‘If you’re using Walmart Scan and Go, you need to go to the register specifically marked Walmart Scan and Go,'” he recounts.
Randall looks around to find the dedicated Scan and Go lane, but can’t find any signage. He flips the camera around to show lanes of registers, none of which seem to be marked as “Scan and Go.”
He approaches a manager to ask where he should go. The manager points to a sign with an obstructed view at the other end of the registers.
READ MORE: Our favorite Black Friday 2025 deals will leave you way cozier for way less
“How am I supposed to see that?” he asks. “In tiny little letter there, ‘Scan and Go.’ The smallest font of anything here and facing in the complete opposite direction.”
When Randall brings up the rude worker who approached him in self-checkout, the manager suggests he cancel his Walmart+ membership.
What’s the right way to go through Scan and Go?
Walmart’s website instructs members to scan the QR code at self-checkout. However, it doesn’t specify whether shoppers must go through a designated Scan and Go lane.
Redditors on r/Walmart suggest that each location differs in how it enforces Scan and Go checkout. Some say that they’re welcome to use any of the self-checkouts. Others say that their nearest Walmart doesn’t even let Scan and Go members use the dedicated lanes.
“We have the dedicated scan and go lane with Walmart+ sign at my store. But our store has made it for Spark shoppers only and leaves an associate guarding it at all times to prevent anyone else from using it, including scan and go users,” one user shares.
Another says that Scan and Go hasn’t been the time-saver they were promised. They write, “Mine has completely shut down all the shelf checkouts but scan&go. But before you can bag anything, they have multiple cashiers going through everyone’s stuff to make sure no one’s stealing.”
In an email to The Mary Sue, Randall says he wishes there was more clarity from Walmart.
“I’m not sure if it was a misunderstanding or something else, but the situation was confusing, especially since the app instructions say you can use any self-checkout,” he writes. “The whole thing just felt poorly handled. Nothing against the staff, I understand they are following directions from higher up, but there really needs to be some consistency.”
Have other Walmart customers dealt with mixed messages?
In the comments on Randall’s video, other Walmart customers say the company’s mixed messages about Scan and Go have made the feature a nightmare to use.
“They do it to me every time. They treat me like I’m some type of bank robber,” a commenter shares.
Another writes, “Our Walmart has Walmart plus lanes that are open to anyone! Make that make sense.”
“Love the feature but hate that all 3 Walmarts near me act like I’m a criminal when I use it,” a third adds.
Some say their experience with Scan and Go has led them to abandon Walmart as their go-to store altogether.
One says, “Just stop shopping at Walmart, best decision I’ve ever made tbh.”
“This type of treatment is exactly why I stopped shopping at Walmart,” a second remarks.
@atlcody @Walmart ♬ original sound – Cody
The Mary Sue reached out to Randall via email and to Walmart via contact form for further comment.
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
