Target, Walmart Charge Customers More Than Advertised Shelf Prices at Checkout, Class Actions Allege

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Target and Walmart have each been hit with a proposed class action that claims the retailers have charged customers more at checkout than the prices advertised on store shelves.

The two cases, both filed by an Ohio resident, allege Target and Walmart have essentially engaged in a “classic ‘bait and switch’” scheme by falsely advertising items for a certain price on store shelves and then charging more for those same items at the register.

According to the suits, this false advertising scheme applies to various items throughout the retailers’ stores and has resulted in customers paying five to 20 percent more than the advertised prices for certain items at Target and five to 10 percent more, or even higher for some items, at Walmart.

The lawsuits go on to claim that the two retailers are “well aware” that they are deceiving customers with respect to pricing given they have each been hit with various fines by state and local agencies for their alleged overcharging and false advertising practices. Per the complaints, the fines are “essentially a slap on the wrist” for the multi-billion-dollar retailers and have not deterred them from continuing to deceive customers.

In the suit against Target, the plaintiff says he visited a Niles, Illinois store on August 2, 2022 and paid $3.79 each for two varieties of Ritz crackers that were advertised for $3.49 on the shelf. The plaintiff also went to a Walmart in Niles on the same day and paid as much as 15 percent more than the advertised shelf price for certain products, according to the case against the company.

The two lawsuits claim the plaintiff’s counsel also investigated other Target and Walmart stores “across many states” and discovered the same deceptive pricing practices.

The cases respectively look to represent anyone who purchased merchandise from a Target or Walmart store in the U.S. at any time within the applicable statute of limitations period and until the date notice is sent out and paid higher prices for the items than the advertised shelf prices.

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