Price Verification
of a proactive Weights & Measures inspection program. I stated some of the benefits that the public and business community receive from those programs including the ability to address consumer complaints, provide consumer protection, correct inaccuracies, and promote equity in the marketplace between competing retailers. When published, I viewed the article and found it to contain exceptionally good and timely information on the issue of pricing integrity, not only as relates to Dollar General, but also to the overall issue. Barron’s magazine is available through a paid subscription. If interested the link to the article is: https://www. barrons.com/articles/dollar-general-stores- overcharging-prices-129addef?mod=hp_LEAD_3 (By Catherine Dunn – March 21, 2023. Updated March 27, 2023) Before these current issues, Vermont weights and measures staff collaborated closely with the VT Attorney General’s Office on price verification violations found at Dollar General. In 2019 the company paid a $1.75 million settlement and agreed to implement a Pricing Accuracy Policy to address the violations. Vermont to Receive $1.75 Million from Dollar General for Pricing Inaccuracies | Agency of Agriculture Food and Markets. The work done by our weights & measures inspection program has led to improvements in pricing accuracy at many retailers, however inspection results from 2022 highlight that ongoing work and challenges exist. In response to the high failure rates for price verification inspections found during 2022, our program evaluated additional steps that might be beneficial to retailers and consumers. We developed a condensed two-page handout for retailers who fail an inspection. The basic handout is designed for store staff and contains information including who has the authority to conduct inspections, benefits of accurate pricing, scanner best practices, common errors found, and links to law and procedure in NIST HB 130. We have developed a Power Point presentation which will soon be posted on our website with information that retail staff can access and gain additional information
Marc Paquette- Vermont Agency of Agriculture Food and Markets
In reviewing both regional and national feedback from Weights & Measures jurisdictions it is apparent that 2022 was a challenging year for enforcement work in the area of price verification. This was certainly true in Vermont. Vermont’s failure rate was the highest recorded since the start of this inspection program. In talking with inspection staff, retailers, and consumers it is as if the perfect storm of inflation, the related large volume of price changes, and retail staffing shortages all contributed on some level to create this scenario. During 2022 I had numerous calls from consumers who had been upset and frustrated over repeated overcharges at retail locations. The concerns follow similar patterns and themes. The customer is overcharged for an item. They address this with the service desk and usually receive a refund. They return the next week, purchase the same item, and are again overcharged, and so the cycle begins again. I am sure my experience is not unique to many jurisdictions around the country. As a result, significant enforcement actions have taken place in various areas around the country and this activity caught the attention of some in the press and business community. In February I was contacted by a reporter from Barron’s magazine due to Vermont’s previous work with price verification and the Dollar General chain. The reporter was authoring an in-depth article on Dollar General, and the related number of pricing violations being found around the country. Speaking with the reporter gave me an opportunity to talk about the issues of pricing integrity, impact on consumers, and the benefits
NCWM-News 22
2023 Issue 2
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