KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

The Consumer Affairs Commission regularly conducts Grocery Surveys across the entire island. Typically these surveys look on availability of some forty-seven items across several brands and the price at which these commodities are available to the consumer. While conducting the surveys several observations are made, these include if the items are properly labeled. If the price on the item is clearly and correctly displayed as well as if there is a disparity between the price on the item, that is the advertised price and the price paid at the cashier, the purchase price.

Price mismatch
From time to time our survey officers will notice that there is a difference in the price on the item and the price that is on the shelf. Or there is a difference in the price on the item and the amount requested by the cashier. We have even noticed in some cases where there is no price displayed at all, neither on the item itself or on the shelf just above or below where the item has been stacked. We also frequently receive complaints from members of the public that they see one price on the item but when they get to the cashier they are asked to pay an amount more than that, which had been displayed on the item. In some cases the difference is due to the addition of GCT. In other words the price displayed on the item does not include GCT. Therefore 15% is added at the register. Though this is an inconvenience to some consumers it is not unacceptable - as vendors are not mandated to ticket their goods with the price inclusive of GCT. However in a number of situations that we have investigated or observed this is not the case. What has been found out is that the price displayed or advertised is lower than the amount requested at the cashier this is unacceptable.

Pay the Lower Price
In the following situations the consumer is to pay the lower price. If an item has two separate price stickers that are clearly displayed, known as double ticketing then the consumer is to pay the lower price. If the item has one price, example $155.00 and the cash register scans the item as $175.00 then the consumer is to pay the lower price. If the item has one price displayed and then the cashier tells you that the price displayed was last week’s price and the cost of the item has gone up, then the consumer is to pay the lower price.

No Excuse
In some of the cases that we have investigated the manager(s) or proprietor(s) of the super market(s) have offered a range of explanations as excuses. One such explanation is that it is the merchandiser and not the super market staff that put the wrong price on and that it was a simple mistake. Or, the bar code on the item tells the cash register and the cashier the correct price and the price on the item had not been updated or is wrong. One manager has even told us that the consumer should have known that there is no way the item could cost that little. The Consumer Affairs Commission does not accept any of these reasons and neither should the Consumer.

Satisfactory Redress
In the cases such as these in which the Commission has intervened we have been successful in getting satisfactory redress for the consumer. We would like to encourage members of the public to continue to report these occurrences as soon as you notice them. As well as to continue to inform vendors, managers and super market salespersons that these practices are not ethical and are not in keeping with customer friendly services.

Tell us what issues you want addressed

Send e-mail to: cacjam@infochan.com or star@gleaner.com

Write to us at: 1B Holborn Road, Kingston 10 Or call us at: 926-1650-2 or toll free 1-888-991-4470, ask for our Information Desk