Home California Walgreens to Pay $2.2 Million in Price Scanner and Expired Product Case

Walgreens to Pay $2.2 Million in Price Scanner and Expired Product Case

by ECT

Walgreens Co. will pay $2.25 million related to alleged pricing and expiration date violations according to the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office.

According to the District Attorney’s Office:

The Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office announced today that its Consumer Protection Unit joined with the District Attorneys of Santa Clara, San Mateo and Santa Cruz Counties in a civil law enforcement action against Walgreen Co., the operator of more than 600 Walgreens stores in California.  Walgreens, a nationwide corporation, has its headquarters in Deerfield, Illinois. 

The civil action was based in part upon scanner inspections conducted by local Weights and Measures offices, including the office of Contra Costa County Department of Agriculture Division of Weights & Measures, Humberto Izquierdo Director.  The District Attorneys alleged that Walgreens violated state law by charging customers more than the lowest posted or advertised price for items.  

The alleged violations also included Walgreens’ failure to comply with laws prohibiting selling or offering to sell infant formula or baby food after the “use by” date and over-the-counter drugs after the expiration date has passed.  These violations were discovered as a result of inspections by the County Environmental Health Services Divisions and District Attorney Investigation Units.  The Santa Clara County Superior Court approved the Modified Stipulated Judgment on January 29, 2018.  

Without admitting wrongdoing, Walgreens agreed to pay $2,250,000 in civil penalties and costs.  The judgment also prohibits violating applicable laws and requires Walgreens to institute a compliance program.  That program includes procedures to ensure the removal of infant formula, baby food and over-the counter drugs prior to the “use by” or “expiration” dates.  The program also requires procedures to ensure that consumers are charged accurate prices, such as removal of shelf tags from store shelves prior to expiration and adjusting charges at point of sale to reflect the lowest advertised, posted or quoted price on the sales floor for in-store purchases.   

The present Modified Stipulated Final Judgment “superseded” or replaced a 2013 pricing violations judgment against Walgreens, by adding new injunctive, compliance and civil penalty and costs provisions to address the new pricing and expired product violations.  Walgreens cooperated with prosecutors during the investigation and the resolution of this case.  

District Attorneys work with Departments of Weights & Measures to protect consumers from pricing errors and with Environmental Health Divisions to enforce laws prohibiting the sale of certain expired products.  Consumers should always check receipts to verify that they are charged the correct price and make sure that the products they purchase are not beyond their expiration dates.  

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2 comments

Nick Jan 30, 2018 - 5:29 pm

They’re crooks.

Libs Nemesis Feb 1, 2018 - 1:38 pm

To whom will this $2.2 million payment be made? I hope it’s to those who purchased the said products.

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