Goodlettsville, Tennessee-based
Dollar General will pay $850,006 in civil forfeitures, surcharges and fees after the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) found the company overcharged customers at several Wisconsin stores.
DATCP found a total of 662 violations of Wisconsin price accuracy laws and 53 violations of refund policy disclosure requirement laws, according to a Monday press release. Those violations occurred between Jan. 30 and Feb. 10 at Dollar General Stores in Milwaukee, South Milwaukee, Kenosha, Appleton, Green Bay, Madison, Menasha and Reedsburg.
During a series of DATCP price verification inspections at 238 Wisconsin stores, the organization checked 7,344 products sold by Dollar General to make sure the prices charged at the register matched or were lower than the prices posted on store shelves.
Approximately 662 items scanned at a higher price than what was posted on store shelves. Consumers were overcharged for 9% of the inspected products. On average, the products that were scanned showed a price 17% higher than the stated price.
“The accuracy of prices on store shelves is among the most basic and essential protections consumers have,” said
Randy Romanski, DATCP secretary. “Consumers should be able to trust that the prices advertised to them are accurate, and they have a right to be informed of the laws protecting them.”
If a customer is overcharged for an item, Wisconsin law requires businesses using electronic price scanner systems to refund at least the difference between the posted price and the price charged at the register. Businesses are legally required to inform customers of this law by posting an easily visible sign. DATCP allegedly found that Dollar General stores were missing this required signage at 45 stores during the initial inspection, and at eight stores upon re-inspection.
The 2023 inspections follow a 2018 settlement which involved Dollar General paying $10,586 for similar alleged violations.
Monday’s release states Dollar General has made changes to prevent future violations, including internal price accuracy checks at every store in Wisconsin at least once every 45 days. Dollar General has spent approximately $70,000 to verify price accuracy since learning of the alleged violations in January, according to the DATCP. The company expects to spend approximately $300,000 annually to support price accuracy in Wisconsin going forward.
