VA Wegmans Ends Self-Scanning App Over Customer Shoplifting

VIRGINIA — If you use the Wegmans SCAN App to speed up check out at the grocery store, we have some bad news for you.

Wegmans will discontinue its SCAN App at all stores, including those across Virginia, on Sunday, Sept. 18, a company representative told Patch. Customers have been able to use to scan and bag items as they walk through the store for contact-free shopping.

The company said the decision was based on the fact that too many people have been using the app to take items without paying.

"SCAN users have told us they love the app and the convenience it offers," the company wrote in an email to customers. "We love it too and have tried many adjustments to keep it. Unfortunately, the losses we are experiencing from this program prevent us from continuing to make it available in its current state."

The app will be deactivated until Wegmans can make improvements that will meet the needs of customers and business, the company said.

According to Loss Prevention Magazine, the most common losses occur when customers fail to scan an item before bagging it or scan the barcode of a cheaper item, whether by mistake or on purpose. The magazine also warned that a store's losses could increase by 33 percent with a handheld scanning program.

Wegmans first introduced the SCAN App in April 2019, and the contactless in-store shopping option became more widespread in stores just as the COVID-19 pandemic was kicking off. It was eventually available to customers in 90 stores across the Northeast, including 14 in Virginia.

Any customer who used the service will be given a $20 courtesy credit in their online account, the company said.