blake murphy wrote:
> On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 20:19:03 -0500, George >
> wrote:
>
>> Virginia Tadrzynski wrote:
>>
>>> When I worked for Walmart as a Customer Service Manager (mid level
>>> management) I was told that we could physically 'observe' someone stuff
>>> goods into a bag and walk out with it but could do nothing. Corporate
>>> policy was that an "Assistant Manager" or higher had to see them steal
>>> before they could be stopped. Find an assistant manager on the floor at any
>>> time.....Good luck. So it got to a point that in the break room the
>>> cashiers and the floor associates kept a tally of who saw how many people
>>> steal. But come bonus time, there wasn't one because 'we allowed
>>> shrink'.......go figure.
>>
>> Big box stores know that with the deep pockets they have it is cheaper
>> to let someone walk away with $100 worth of stuff than to be involved
>> even in token litigation for say $12,000 which I understand is the
>> current amount your "council" can pretty much ask for and you will get a
>> part of simply to go away.
>>
>
> bullshit, george. how about a cite?
>
> your pal,
> blake

It is an everyday thing that businesses do that isn't published for
obvious reasons. There is a cost to defend any suit or for that matter
investigate any claim. Since ultimately it comes down to how much
something will cost it makes sense for a deep pocketed business to
simply make a deal and pay a token amount to make it go away rather than
proceed with litigation.

There are lawyers that thrive on this kind of stuff. It isn't
multi-million dollar get your face on the front page deals but it is a
constant income. My cousins husband is a local lawyer (honest guy, just
makes an average income) who started out working for a firm that had
their partners pictures on the city buses telling everyone that they
would help them. He said there was a constant parade of people who knew
the possibilities coming to the firm and the junior staff would get
those cases. He said it is common knowledge in those circles how much
can be demanded.

My buddies wife is a paralegal and actually works for the same firm my
cousins husband worked for (we all bust her about getting an honest
job). She doesn't name names but always has lots of stories about these
types of cases that they handle.

Same thing with insurance companies. There is a certain threshold where
they don't even look at a claim because the cost of an investigator is
more than the claim.

As Virginia said the big box stores know all of this and that it is a no
win situation to even try and stop or pursue people because of possible
litigation because of their deep pockets so they choose to write it off
as shrinkage. I am friendly with the police chief of a nearby town where
most of the local big box stores are located. I was in his office a few
months back and he showed me a DVD of a shoplifter and we got into a
discussion about how they handle it. He said a mom & pop shop might do
something on their own (which I think is right) and detain the person
but the big box places simply call the police after the fact and bring
them into the room where the DVRs are located, show them what happened
and burn them a copy.