A SUPERMARKET has apologised to a customer who was left speechless after being banned from using her mobile phone at a Crayford checkout.

Jo Clarke says the checkout assistant at Sainsbury’s refused to serve her until she hung up her phone.

The 26-year-old property manager was doing her midweek shop in the Stadium Way store at 5.40pm on June 24 when the bust-up happened.

She told News Shopper: "I was standing at the foot of the till waiting to bag my shopping up, yet the lady on the checkout was just staring at me, when I stopped my conversation and said: ‘Is everything ok?’

"‘She said: ‘I will not check your shopping out until you get off your mobile phone’.

"‘I ended my call swiftly, and said to the lady on the checkout: ‘Apologies, I didn’t realise that it was Sainsbury’s policy that you are unable to use your phone at the checkout’, and she said ‘Well you learn something new every day’."

On her way out of the store, Miss Clarke, of Alfriston Close, Crayford, double-checked with the customer services desk which confirmed this is not the company's policy.

She said: "I was dumbfounded at the time so just hung up. I don’t know what she was playing at. I couldn’t believe how rude she was.

"When did she have the right to give me a lecture on checkout etiquette?

"I won’t be shopping there again - I’ll go to Waitrose in Dartford instead."

Miss Clarke has submitted an official complaint to Sainsbury’s but has not had a response yet.

A Sainsbury’s spokesman said: "We have apologised to Ms Clarke and offered her some vouchers. It isn’t our policy to not serve customers who are using a mobile phone.”

What do you think? Should mobile phones be banned at checkouts?