Land of Oz

You've Been Screwed

Today was the second time in three days that I've had to go back out into the store to find either a regular or sale tag because the checkout clerk couldn't figure out the price and wouldn't believe me. The first was Lowes, where I had to go back and find some hardware with a price tag. The clerk called someone in that department but didn't believe me when I told her what I had and completely miss-identified the item to the person in the department. So I had to go back there and find another part with a bar code. And while I was there, the guy showed me another part I'd wanted that a previous guy back there said they were out of.

Today it was at Krogers. On the cheese aisle, there was a sign that said Kraft String Cheese, 7-12 oz, all varieties, $2.95. This was a pretty good deal since the regular price was $4.39. I usually use the self-scan checkout and the price scanned at 4.39. I told the clerk about it and she looked at a flier and told me I was wrong - it wasn't on sale. So I left everything sitting on the scanner counter and walked back to the dairy aisle and took the sign down and brought it back to the clerk. She took the sign and then closely looked at the string cheese I bought. I had to point out that it was Kraft and it was string cheese and it was 12 ounces. She finally put in a refund on the price. What a hassle. I felt like I was trying to embezzle from the company payroll instead of get my fair price on some stupid string cheese.

The big reason I catch this stuff is that I usually shop for small quantities so I can remember what the prices are supposed to be for the 10 - 15 items I usually purchase. And almost without exception, it's overpriced at checkout, not under-priced. And yes, there have been times in the past when I pointed the underpricing out. But not always. I shouldn't have to be the one to point out the price mistakes in the store.

I have to wonder what those folks who roll through with one or two heaped up shopping carts. Can they possibly keep track of the prices and notice that a pack of cheese is rung up at $4.39 instead of the $2.95 it's supposed to be? Somehow I doubt it. That also makes me wonder just how much the stores make on the incorrect prices they charge.