As the holiday shopping season continues, shoppers are reminded to check their store receipts for overcharges. Shoppers are legally entitled to pay only a store’s lowest advertised or posted price for any item. County inspections have revealed that overcharge errors do occur and often involve items with special promotional offers, "sales," and markdowns for which price information has not been updated in the scanner system. Holiday shopping presents many opportunities for such errors.

Overcharges can be easily missed. We encourage consumers to monitor prices charged at the checkout register and to report errors to the manager or customer service desk before leaving the store.

Shoppers who are overcharged should contact the County of Los Angeles Department of Agricultural Commissioner/Weights and Measures at 1-800-655-2900 or may submit a complaint by
clicking here.

All complaints will be investigated the same day received or the next business day. It is not necessary to send receipts. Callers should be prepared to provide the following information: a complete description of the item or items, the shelf price or advertised price, the price scanned at the checkout register, and the date the overcharge occurred.

The County’s Buyer Beware Program was established in February 2002 after a sampling of price accuracy at stores throughout Los Angeles County revealed that overcharges occurred at two-thirds of the locations. The program requires all stores with automated price look-up systems to register with the Department of Agricultural Commissioner/Weights and Measures and provides for routine inspections of stores to monitor price accuracy. Since implementation of the program, price scanner accuracy has improved due to stringent enforcement by our undercover inspectors.