I read this article a while back regarding a research project being done in NZ to determine the % of customers who are overcharged by supermarket scanners http://www.nzherald.co.nz/consumer-information/news/article.cfm?c_id=164&objectid=10560545.
The preliminary study showed that less than half of customers check their bills. Translated into monetary terms the overcharging could run to millions of dollars.
I decided last week to see if my supermarket was ripping me off. I took a graphics calculator shopping – it allows me to enter the prices easily into a stats menu and all the information is held in the memory. The only draw back was hubby and I couldn’t split up to shop because we had to enter the prices so shopping took a little longer. ‘Disappointingly’ it all added up perfectly.
However tonight my day was made at The Warehouse when I checked my receipt and realized I had been overcharged by $2! It has inspired me to keep taking the calculator to the supermarket for a few more weeks to see how accurate the bar coding really is at my local supermarket. How does your local supermarket stack up regarding ripping you off?