‘Are you sure?’: Target shoppers find pickleball rackets that scan $0. Then a worker steps in at self-checkout

If you're out shopping and an item scans in for $0.00 at self-checkout, you might think it's your lucky day—free merchandise, the computer said so.

However, if you're shopping at Target, they might not let you purchase the item at all.

TikToker @maddsla writes that they attempted to purchase pickleball rackets at the retailer. However, she was unable to actually buy the items when they got to the self-checkout. Apparently, the items were not meant to be on the sales floor in the first place.

"When we were trying to buy pickleball rackets at Target and because they scan zero dollars they apparently shouldn't have ever been on the floor...they even told us they were going to throw them away," a text overlay on the video reads.

The TikTok has drawn over 280,000 views as of Friday.

The Daily Dot has reached out to @maddsla via TikTok comment. We also emailed Target regarding the video.

So what is the issue?

The rackets were on the sales floor...so they should be able to buy them, right?

Well, it might depend on a few different things. The item could be marked wrong, on a recall, or a retailer might simply determine that the item is no longer a good seller and would rather salvage the item than sell it for a discount.

Is it a glitch?

There is also the possibility that the pricing was a computer glitch.

Target has drawn attention previously from "glitches" in its pricing system that bring merchandise worth several hundred dollars down to much lower prices. For example, several shoppers were able to score an iPad for $69 at the retailer—down from the regular price of $329—before a manager got wise to the situation and addressed it.

Viewers share their theories

Some viewers, writing that they had previously worked for Target, shared what they think might have caused this. Some think the employee might have been in the wrong.

"As a TL there, they CAN sell it, and should because it’s $$$ rather than the ¢ we get for salvaging it," one commenter wrote. "They need to go to the price change app on their device, it shows OG price, then 70% off that!"

"It’s much more hassle having to take the item back and putting it through the system than it is to price adjust and sell it, especially if you are already at the register," another said.

"Target team member here, what happened was the item went clearance, once it hits final markdown & doesn’t sell it then goes to what we call salvage, needs to be taken off the floor & cannot be sold," another wrote.

Others shared that something similar had happened to them, from the customer side of the interaction.

"Yeah this happened at target with some shorts I got before , rang it up at self checkout for 0$ and got it , not illegal if the tag literally says $0 their own fault," one commenter wrote.

"This happened to me. I went to buy a baby food maker. It was $120," another commenter wrote. "On clearance for $30. Scanned as salvage. The cashier gave it to me for $0.20."

"I made target [sell] me a display table because I had a sticker on it and I fought and I got it," one said.

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The post ‘Are you sure?’: Target shoppers find pickleball rackets that scan $0. Then a worker steps in at self-checkout appeared first on The Daily Dot.