State announces fines for NC stores with excessive price scanner errors

State regulators have levied fines on several North Carolina retailers because the scanned prices at check-out did not match the store's advertised prices, officials said.

Posted 10:22 p.m. Oct 31, 2019 — Updated 10:22 p.m. Oct 31, 2019

Caitlin Richards

, WRAL digital intern

RALEIGH, N.C. — State regulators have levied fines on several North Carolina retailers because the scanned prices at check-out did not match the store’s advertised prices, officials said.

The stores that were fined by the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Standards Division had locations in Anson, Franklin, Gaston, Granville, Scotland, Vance and Wake counties due to excessive price-scanner errors.

“The price on the shelf and the price at the register should match,” said Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. “Stores have a responsibility to make sure their pricing is accurate, and most stores pass inspection. Ones with errors face fines until they come into compliance.”

In order to check for accuracy between prices advertised and prices that ring up at the register, the department performs unannounced inspections of price-scanner systems in businesses.

If a store has more than a 2 percent error rate on overcharges, inspectors review findings with the store manager and a follow-up inspection is conducted at a later date, according to the statement.

Penalties are assessed if a store fails a follow-up inspection. The stores are subjected to re-inspection every 60 days from the last inspection until it meets the required error rate. Additional penalties may be assessed if a store fails a re-inspection.

Following are stores that paid civil penalties in the second quarter of 2019:

(Anson) Wadesboro IGA, a grocery store, at 805 Camden Road, Wadesboro. The store was charged a fine of $2,565.
(Franklin) Advance Auto Parts at 3420 US Highway 1 North, Franklinton. The store was charged a fine of $375.
(Gaston) Target at 425 Cox Road, Gastonia. The store was charged a fine of $15,895.
(Granville) Dollar General at 2500 NC 96 South, Franklinton. The store was charged a fine of $3,080.
(Scotland) Advance Auto Parts at 1216 South Main St., Laurinburg. The store was charged a fine of $375.
(Vance) Dollar General at 6867 Broad St., Middleburg. The store was charged a fine of $915.
(Wake) Family Dollar at 2001 Rock Quarry Road, Raleigh. The store was charged a fine of $3,275.
(Wake) Walmart at 8000 Triangle Town Blvd., Raleigh. The store was charged a fine of $915.

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