Is It Wrong To Help A Customer Who Is Permanently or Temporarily Disabled?

We were just discussing disabilities in relation to shopping, and a question popped into my head. Is it wrong to help a customer who is permanently or temporarily disabled?

There seems to be a very similar breakdown of percentages of physically disabled customers, both temporarily and permanently, who either gladly accept the help offered to them, or blow off the clerk who’s offering help by saying something along the line of: “Do I look like I need your help!?” (um, yes you do…) or “I can manage by myself!”, in a snappy tone of voice. Sure, many customers refuse the help politely, but mainly it’s “thank you so much”, or “go away, I don’t need you help”. It’s because of the angry customers with disabilities why I’ve asked this question.

Any clerk SHOULD ALWAYS atleast offer assistance to a disabled customer, regardless whether they’re in a wheelchair, on crutches, or have their arm in a cast.

The topic of this post would be a non-issue, were it not for several personality quirks which some disabled, or “physically challenged” customers possess. (I don’t know which term is politically correct, the one that would not offend, so I’ll just use whatever pops into my mind. I apologize.) [edit: 23.10.07]
Back to the quirks. Regardless of whether you’re in a wheelchair or just have a cast on a few of your fingers, if a clerk offers you help, either accept it thankfully, or reject it politely. It’s that simple.

I realize that not all people are the same. There are multitudes of varying levels of physical disabilities, and rarely are clerks taught how exactly to respond to each such situation. This is where we, the clerks, need your help, to make your shopping experience pleasant and effective. That’s really what this thing is all about.

If you, the consumer, are physically disabled in a way which diminishes your ability to shop efficiently, don’t hesitate to ask for help from the clerks, if you need help. That’s what the clerks are there for.

If you don’t need help when it is offered, it is perfectly ok to politely turn down the offer. The keyword here is POLITELY. No screaming, no snapping, no crankiness. The clerk, when offering assistance, is NOT looking down at you for your disability, thinking you’re any lesser of a person. It’s either store policy to offer help, or the clerk is doing it to be NICE.

Oh, and to all you customers who aren’t disabled: you’re going to have to wait your turn patiently if the only clerk in the store is helping a disabled customer. Every customer is to be treated equally, it’s just that some customers really do need extra assistance. If you were in that wheelchair, you’d appreciate the help, wouldn’t you?

If you have a story relating to this post, from either side of the counter, let’s hear it!

The customer is NOT always right. If you agree with this, or wish to know what to do and not do as a consumer, please subscribe to this blog’s updates by the way of the RSS feed or email subscriptions. Thank you for shopping at the Consumer Etiquette Guide, now go and make someone have a nice day at work!