Companies in the service industry are no strangers to rude customers. It happens at Starbucks, McDonald’s, or, in this case, Home Depot. Fortunately, there is a subreddit for the hardware store where they can vent their frustrations.
We’ve collected the top posts about shoppers who’ve been impatient, entitled, and downright difficult. All of them provide an insight into what these employees deal with regularly.
Scroll through each one and see if you or a friend have been this person to deal with at some point. And if you’ve been (or still are) an employee, we’d love to hear your stories in the comments.
#1 Please Schedule Me Better
Image credits: Entria
#2 Shingle Man
Asked the customer “What are you doing?” He said I need I pack of shingles and you guys are taking forever. I’m like “Ahhhh sir there is a full pallet in the home… “He replied with “but I need the ceramic ones…” I’m like Wth.
Image credits: Competitive-Bear-196
#3 They Be Headin To The Depot After Surgery
Image credits: reddit.com
Bored Panda previously spoke to Marlon Joseph, a restaurant server of nearly two decades and host of the Modern Waiter podcast. He has his ways of dealing with different levels of irksome behavior.
“If a guest gets rude in a personal way, I deal with it directly and tell them ‘I’m going to need you to be nice to me for me to continue.’”
#4 People Have To Much Time On Their Hands
Image credits: ribboy555
#5 Idk If Anyone Else Has This Happen. Doesn’t Help That My Hd Is Right Across The Street
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#6 Overnight Coworker Just Sent Me This
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But if a customer is being a nuisance, Marlon makes them his least priority. “If they are being rude in an annoying way, I make them wait,” he said.
“They will wait for me to take their order. They will wait for their food. They will wait for their check. I may even tell them their credit card has declined if that person is paying. I may even tell them we ran out of an item even though we have it.”
#7 Customers Be Like:
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#8 How Many Times Will I Have To Hear It?
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#9 “Oh My Back Hurts I Cant You”
Image credits: SoopahDoopahPoopah
According to Marlon, people who treat waitstaff poorly are usually hungry, having a bad day, or both. But as he reminds the dining public, “servers have bad days, too.”
“I do not think rude people are self-aware, especially if it is them being jerks. Most rude people in a restaurant are situationally on tilt,” he said. “So they use a measure of power to ease their aggravation.
“Unfortunately, a server may not want to give their best to a guest like that, and the result is bad service.”
#10 So It Looks Like 12 Is The Magic Number
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#11 Real
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#12 Nun Returns 800$ In Flowers Everyday. We Have A Nun Who Buys Flowers For The Church Events Depending On What Color They Need. It’s A Endless Cycle. Happens Everyday!!
Image credits: Hotpotato_95
Society can be quick to judge a bad customer, and understandably so. However, experts are revealing potential underlying reasons for such behavior. According to psychologist Reena B. Patel, humans are naturally wired to feel rattled when things don’t go as planned.
“You walk into a restaurant for breakfast thinking you’ll get seated in 15 minutes and instead you’re waiting 45; now, your whole routine is shifting, and the stress is building up,” Dr. Patel told the BBC in a 2022 interview.
#13 Dog Obedience Class Inside The Store At 6pm. Wtf?
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#14 Today At Home Depot 7141
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#15 Another Fine Day At The Home Depot
Image credits: PhutureHS
The BBC article mentioned the scapegoat theory, explaining why people look for someone to blame. It also touched on why service employees are the usual punching bags.
“It’s going to happen on the phone with a customer-service worker, or at the discount store or McDonald’s,” said psychology professor Melanie Morrison. ”People that are working those jobs often do not have a lot of power, and so they become easier targets.”
#16 Customer Return
Image credits: Shortsrealm
#17 When They Expect You To Be An Expert
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#18 Lol
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Dr. Patel says being a rude customer doesn’t define a person. But she also suggests managing expectations as one way to prevent scenarios from potentially blowing up.
“Sometimes we don’t make the best choices. But you can do things differently so you don’t have that same reaction,” she said. “That might be as simple as waking up 10 minutes earlier to create a buffer in your schedule.
“If things don’t go the way you want, you’re not so stressed about it. You don’t want to be rigid in your expectations.”
#19 There’s A Reason We Don’t Cut Under 12 Inches
Image credits: FLCertified
#20 Since When Did We Get A Drive Through?
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#21 Is It Black? Yes It Is
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Dr. Patel also suggested focusing on the situation at hand and how to move forward from it.
“Instead of the word ‘you,’ use the word ‘we.’ Ask the customer service agent, ‘How can we solve this problem?’ It diffuses that hostile energy, and then you trying to get what you want becomes more of a collaborative process.”
#22 Who Does This?
Image credits: Tgoo98
#23 Yes, This Is A Return
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#24 These Customers Are Wild
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#25 Our Return Policy Is 180 Days Not 25 Years
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#26 Classic
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#27 Us Cashiers Who Work The Opening Shift
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#28 This Return Has Had Me Cracking Up All Day
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#29 Some Idiot Thought The Display Was Plumbed In And Dumped Their Coffee
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#30 4 Stages Of Returning Stolen Items
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#31 Never Heard That One Before
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#32 Comedy
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#33 Me When I Knowingly Send The Customer To The Wrong Aisle
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#34 Lovely Way To Start My Shift
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#35 “I Bought A Range Hood, What Duct Size Does It Need?” And Many, Many Others
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#36 Aisle Closed‼️‼️
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#37 Just Know If You Start Our Interaction By Bringing Up The Price Of Lumber, I Have Already Checked Out Of The Conversation
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#38 Customer Survey
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#39 Can I Ask You A Question ”quick” Question And It Usually Ends Up Being A Complicated Question
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#40 Pumkin
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#41 Think It’s Fine…
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#42 Never Gets Old
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#43 Sharing A Brain Cell
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#44 Awkward
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#45 Decided To Check The Reviews On My Store On Google Maps… Wasn’t Disappointed Lol
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#46 “I Should Be Able To Pay Cash And Card!!!!”
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#47 “Can You Help Me Load This? I Just Got Back Surgery.”
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#48 I Love Our Customers
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#49 Don’t Cry Over Spilled Paint?
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#50 Literally Had To Watch 3 Guys Steal The Whole Bottom Shelf Of The Makita Bay
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#51 An Ofa And I Had To Hand Load This Into The Truck. It’s 21° And Feels Like 8°. Meanwhile, The Customer Was Sitting In The Truck And Didn’t Help A Bit. Love It Here
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#52 This Regular Has Always Been A Piece Of S**t
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#53 This Is My Safespace!
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#54 “Why Are You Pulling Out Your Phone?”
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#55 Gotta Love A Mulch Sale
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#56 “You Don’t Know This? Why Are You In This Department Then?” Sir, I’m Passing Through Cause I Gotta Pee
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#57 Every Time
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#58 It’s Too Early
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#59 Why?
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#60 “Are You The Expert That I’m Looking For?”
Image credits: nickscion46