A 79-year-old great-grandmother has spoken of her shock after being permanently banned from every Sainsbury’s and Argos store in the UK following an altercation with staff at her local branch. Retired customer service worker Rita Seymour, from Hook, Hampshire, claims she was unfairly treated during a visit to her local supermarket and insists she did nothing to justify the lifetime ban.

The incident occurred in June while Mrs Seymour was carrying out her weekly grocery shop, during which she typically spends between £80 and £100. After paying for her items, she approached the customer service counter to purchase a Euromillions lottery ticket.

According to Mrs Seymour, repeated requests for assistance went unanswered. She alleges that she then overheard a member of staff speaking through a headset and describing her as being rude.

The situation quickly escalated, with Mrs Seymour claiming managers became involved and began raising their voices while gesturing aggressively. During the confrontation, a staff member reportedly attempted to activate a body-worn camera. Mrs Seymour admits she pushed the device from the employee’s hand, causing it to fall to the floor.

Despite this, she maintains she was not responsible for provoking the dispute.

“I am not the guilty party,” she said. “I wasn’t unpleasant to anyone. I’m nearly 80 years old and I’m certainly not looking to start arguments with people.

“I worked in customer service all my life and I’ve never been spoken to in that way.”

Mrs Seymour also alleged that staff questioned whether she had stolen her shopping. She says she immediately produced her receipt to prove she had paid before being escorted from the premises.

The pensioner, who suffers from heart disease, said the experience left her deeply shaken.

“I was absolutely stunned,” she said. “I was trembling when I left and felt close to tears. It knocked my confidence completely.”

When she returned to the store the following day, Mrs Seymour said she was handed a letter informing her that her permission to enter any Sainsbury’s or Argos store, including associated petrol stations, car parks and adjoining land, had been permanently revoked.

The mother of one, grandmother of four and great-grandmother of two said the decision has had a significant impact on her daily life.

“It’s horrible knowing I can’t go back there,” she said. “It makes you feel like a criminal.”

Having lived in Hook since 1981, Mrs Seymour said she has never previously been involved in trouble and strongly disputes suggestions that there had been earlier incidents involving store staff.

“I’ve lived here for 45 years and I’ve never had a mark against my name,” she said. “I’m not a troublemaker and I won’t accept being treated this way.”

The ban means Mrs Seymour must now travel further to do her shopping, with the nearest Tesco requiring a 30-minute walk compared with the eight-minute journey to her local Sainsbury’s. Her husband is disabled, making the change even more challenging.

After lodging a complaint with Sainsbury’s head office, Mrs Seymour said she was disappointed to learn the company had supported the actions of its employees.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Sainsbury’s said: “We want everyone to feel welcome when they shop with us and our colleagues work hard to create a positive in-store experience.

“We take any form of abusive and inappropriate behaviour seriously and, following a number of incidents over time, a decision was taken to withdraw this individual’s right to shop at our Hook store.

“This action was not taken lightly, but the safety and wellbeing of colleagues and customers always come first.”

Mrs Seymour denies there were any previous incidents and says she intends to continue challenging the decision in an effort to have the ban overturned.

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