I am shocked and dismayed at the degree and volume of vitriol in So many comments. They largely miss the point: elderly people (and customers in general) deserve respectful, polite treatment. Having had a similarly unpleasant, disheartening incident at this retailer in the past three months, for a slight variation of this exact reason, I can vouch for the overly harsh, blunt approach of a customer "service" representative.  It isn't wrong for a customer unfamiliar with the system to be unacquainted with the "rules" and it isn't wrong to fit in a quick shop before another event. However, it is wrong to be rude and dismissive  to customers, and it is very bad form to attack the writer on specious grounds.