Rita Seymour who was banned from for life from all Sainsbury's stores.Hook, 25th June 2026 . // A great-grandmother banned from every Sainsbury???s in Britain has pleaded to be allowed back in - because her next nearest supermarket is 'too far away'.Rita Seymour was told she was not welcome by the chain after a "number of incidents over time" at her local store in Hook, Hants.However, the 79-year-old claims she is "not that sort of person" and wants the ban to be lifted.She says the Sainsbury's is a five-minute walk from her house - compared to a 20-minute walk to Tesco. Photo released 28/06/2026
Rita Seymour, 79, has been banned from Sainsbury’s stores for allegedly being rude to staff (Picture: Tony Kersha /SWNS)

A great-grandmother has been barred from every Sainsbury’s and Argos store in the UK after behaving ‘inappropriately’ towards staff.

Rita Seymour said she was accused by shopkeepers of ‘pinching’ items before being permanently banned from shopping at every one of the group’s 1,500 stores nationwide.

The 79-year-old from Hook, Hampshire, allegedly abused staff on multiple occasions, including during an altercation while she was buying a EuroMillions ticket.

Mrs Seymour had asked several times to buy lottery tickets after completing her food shopping when a staff member told her colleague on her headset she had been rude to her.

The grandmother-of-four and great-grandmother-of-two admitted to having knocked a body-worn camera out of the shopkeeper’s hand as she tried to activate it.

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The following day she was given a letter saying her invitation to shop at Sainsbury’s and Argos stores as well as use their car parks and petrol stations had been ‘permanently withdrawn’.

General view of Hook Sainsbury???s where Rita Seymour who was banned from for life from all Sainsbury's stores.Hook, 25th June 2026 . // A great-grandmother banned from every Sainsbury???s in Britain has pleaded to be allowed back in - because her next nearest supermarket is 'too far away'.Rita Seymour was told she was not welcome by the chain after a "number of incidents over time" at her local store in Hook, Hants.However, the 79-year-old claims she is "not that sort of person" and wants the ban to be lifted.She says the Sainsbury's is a five-minute walk from her house - compared to a 20-minute walk to Tesco. Photo released 28/06/2026
Mrs Seymour was told she had been permanently barred from Sainsbury’s following an incident at her local superstore in Hook, Hampshire (Picture: Tony Kershaw / SWNS)

The decision means Mrs Seymour can no longer use her local superstore in Hook, where she spends between £80 and £100 on groceries.

She now faces a 30-minute walk to Tesco instead.

However the pensioner, who previously worked in customer service, denied she was a ‘troublemaker’ and said the ban had left her ‘dumbfounded’.

Mrs Seymour also denied being involved in any other altercations with staff in the store.

She said: ‘It’s really upset me, I’ve done nothing wrong.

‘It’s a horrible thing to feel inside, I can’t go in there anymore. It’s like being a criminal.’

‘I have been so dumbfounded. I was shaking when I left there; I could have cried’, she added.

Pictured: Rita Seymour. A great-grandmother has been left distraught and feeling like a 'criminal' after she was banned for life from all Sainsbury's stores for allegedly being rude to a member of staff. Retired Rita Seymour was accused of being 'rude' to a member of staff when she was trying to buy a Euromillions Lottery ticket. The staff accused the pensioner of 'pinching' her shopping and started 'shouting' at her before ushering her out of the store. The 79-year-old said she is now banned from all Sainsbury's in the country for behaving 'inappropriately' during 'a number of incidents over time,' but she denied that any other incidents had occurred. SEE OUR COPY FOR DETAILS. Please byline: Basingstoke Gazette/Solent News ?? Basingstoke Gazette/Solent News & Photo Agency UK +44 (0) 2380 458800
Mrs Seymour said the ban had left her ‘dumbfounded’ and denied she was a ‘troublemaker’ (Picture: Basingstoke Gazette/Solent News)

‘They have knocked my confidence, I felt like hiding away, I didn’t know who to turn to make it right.’

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.’

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