Let anyone who has never checked their bill at the grocery store cast the first stone. Mistakes are frequent, however, and it is possible to pay less for our food by looking more closely at it.
“Be careful not to leave money behind when you leave the grocery store,” suggests Sylvain Charlebois, director of Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytical Sciences Laboratory.
His lab is now releasing a survey on the subject, as “checkout errors don’t get special attention” even though “food prices are very high and everyone is trying to find ways to save money.” money “.
Over the past year, 69% of Quebecers say they have noticed errors on their grocery receipts. The figure drops to 67% for all of the 5,525 Canadians surveyed.
“We were surprised at the number of errors,” says the food specialist.
The most frequent error observed by consumers is a difference between the price at the checkout and that displayed on the shelf (75%). Two other common flaws: a sale of the day that is not applied at checkout (35%) and a cashier who scans the same product more than once (31%).
Automatic $10 rebate
Whether these errors are accidental or not, Quebec grocers are obliged to compensate those who notice them.
When an item exceeds the price displayed on the shelf, it can be claimed for free if it is worth less than $10. If it’s worth more, you get a $10 discount.
In Quebec, the law requires it, while elsewhere in Canada, only retailers who comply with a voluntary national code grant a rebate.
In total, according to the survey released today, 20.6% of Canadians believe they have saved at least $50 a year by reporting errors to their grocer.
When a customer complains about an error, the situation is generally resolved to their advantage: 87% of consumers say they are satisfied with the way grocers handled their complaint.
In Quebec, 40% say they are very satisfied with the grocer’s response, compared to 26% in Nova Scotia.
Exceptions
As a general rule, a Quebec retailer must label each product in store. However, there is an exemption that all grocers claim.
They must then comply with certain conditions, including the application of the Price Accuracy Policy and the indication of prices on the shelves.
All prizes must be linked into the same computer, which in turn must be linked to all optical readers. Customers should also have scanners available in the aisles to check the price of a product.
If there is an optical drive error, the $10 policy applies.
“It excludes code errors, when the cashier or cashier does not enter the correct tomato code for example,” says Charles Tanguay, of the Consumer Protection Office (OPC).
Sometimes the retailer refuses to acknowledge their mistake. The customer can then ask to speak to the manager.
“There is often stubbornness about the fact that this is really it, that it does not apply, because there are certain exceptions, such as milk and alcoholic products”, continues Mr. Tanguay.
If the situation is not resolved, the customer can file a complaint with the OPC, which sometimes condemns merchants who have not applied the Price Accuracy Policy.
►From March 1, 2022 to February 28, 2023, the OPC registered 323 complaints related to the Price Accuracy Policy, i.e. less than 1% of the total number of complaints.
THE MOST FREQUENT ERRORS OBSERVED ON THE GROCERY BILL
- The price at checkout was not the same as on the shelves
75,8 % - A sale “of the day” was not applied
35,3 % - The cashier picked up a product too often
31,4 % - The product code was the wrong one
16,1 % - A non-taxable product was taxed
9,2 % - Conversion for product weight was not done correctly
7,0 %
What are your remedies?
- When the price displayed on the invoice is not the same as on the shelf, the customer gets the product for free if it is worth less than $10, or a discount of $10 if it is worth more.
- In case of refusal, you must ask to speak to the manager.
- If the manager refuses, it can only be for products exempt from the price accuracy policy, such as milk or alcoholic beverages.
- The last option is to complain to the Consumer Protection Office, which has the power to condemn the retailer.
Source: Dalhousie University Agri-Food Analytical Sciences Laboratory survey
conducted in collaboration with Caddle at the beginning of March 2023 with 5525 Canadianss