A MORTIFIED mother and daughter have hit out after security guards in a local supermarket branded them shoplifters and threw them out of the store.

Clare and Erin Lynch were at the Greenock Tesco Extra on Dalrymple Street on a routine shopping trip to pick up nappies and other items for Erin's 11-month-old baby.

But just five minutes into their shopping trip, two security officers approached them and demanded they leave the premises.

The guards told the pair that they had been caught on camera the week before stealing items from the store - an accusation that both Clare and Erin strongly deny.

They insist that they are the victims of mistaken identity and say they have had no contact from the police over the allegation against them.

Clare, 44, told the Tele that the confrontation left her greatly upset.

She said: "It was absolutely mortifying.

"I was astounded and couldn't believe what they were telling me.

"We had barely been in the store five minutes when we were told to leave.

"I have never been so embarrassed in my life - there were customers and staff members watching the whole thing.

"I burst into tears and was so upset, it was so humiliating and degrading."

The mum and daughter say that they were told the store had CCTV of them stealing but staff failed to show them the footage when they challenged this.

Erin says the experience has put her off shopping with the supermarket giant again.

The 27-year-old said: "I broke down when I got home, I cannot believe they did that to us.

"We use our Clubcard every week, there is proof of us making purchases.

"We just wanted our names cleared, nobody deserves to be put through that."

Clare says she has since been contacted by another individual who told her she had a similar experience in the store.

The disgruntled grandmother added: "Someone else told me after I put it on social media that they had the same thing happen to them and they received an apology.

"You think that would have been a lesson to double check things rather than putting people in such a horrible position."

The Telegraph contacted Tesco bosses over the case and put Clare and Erin's denials to them.

Bosses defended their handling of the situation.

A Tesco spokesperson said: “We take security and safety in our stores very seriously and where we have evidence of shoplifting we will take action to ensure it does not happen again.”