Walmart Settles Consumer Protection Case for Scanner Price Overcharges and False Advertising

Walmart Scanner Judgment (PDF 5 MB)

Sonoma County District Attorney, Carla Rodriguez, along with the District Attorneys of San Diego, San Bernardino, and Santa Clara Counties, announced today the settlement of a consumer protection lawsuit against Walmart. The defendant will pay $5,639,801.92 to settle a civil law enforcement complaint alleging that Walmart engaged in false advertising and unfair competition in California.

District Attorney Rodriguez stated, “Our Environmental and Consumer Law Division is working with other District Attorney’s Offices throughout California, to hold companies accountable, ensure that consumers get the benefit of their bargains, and enforce California’s robust consumer protection laws. I want to personally thank Sonoma County Department of Weights and Measures for their thorough inspections that assisted with the final judgment”

The civil complaint filed by the prosecution team alleged that the retailer unlawfully charged customers prices higher than their lowest advertised or posted price. In addition to the scanner violations, Walmart also had issues with inaccurate weights on their product labels. Some items sold by weight such as produce, baked goods, and other prepared items had less product in the package than indicated on the label.

The Judgment includes an injunction prohibiting Walmart from engaging in false or misleading advertising. It also requires the retailer to maintain regional compliance associates who will be responsible for price accuracy in California stores in addition to individual store managers.

The Sonoma County Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures, is the agency that inspected Walmart stores throughout Sonoma County and is instrumental in monitoring retailers to make sure that consumers are being charged for accurate prices and weight packaging. Consumers may report overcharges to the Sonoma County Department of Weights and Measures by calling (707)-565-2371 or online at https://sonoma.prod.simpligov.com/prod/portal/ShowWorkFlow/AnonymousEmbed/d465d27e-9528-47e2-ba58-c73b4d7d5efe

Deputy District Attorney Caroline L. Fowler and Deputy District Attorney Jessica Washington were the prosecutors for the Sonoma County District Attorney.

Contact Information