By SUZANNE DOWNING
When the price on the shelf says one thing, but your receipt says another, that’s actually a violation of Alaska Statute. But it’s happening a lot more than you might think, or even consider, if you’re not one who checks receipts. Alaska Attorney General Stephen Cox announced a new statewide initiative Monday in response to rising consumer concerns about inflation and checkout price discrepancies.
The Alaska Department of Law will deploy both overt and covert investigative teams to conduct price-verification testing at grocery retailers statewide. The effort is designed to promote transparency, encourage voluntary compliance, and identify systemic pricing errors that may violate Alaska’s consumer protection laws.
“With inflation still top of mind for Alaska families, and grocery bills already higher here than almost anywhere else in the country, dollars and cents matter to everyday consumers,” Attorney General Cox said in a statement. “Alaskans deserve to pay the price they see on the shelf. This initiative is about protecting consumers and driving pricing accuracy at the register, where it counts.”
Overt investigators will conduct announced inspections in coordination with store staff, checking shelf prices against register totals and identifying discrepancies. Those visits will be followed by covert inspections, where investigators shop anonymously to verify whether previously identified errors have been corrected.
According to the Department of Law, the initiative is intended to promote fair and accurate pricing practices, encourage voluntary compliance across the grocery industry, and identify systemic issues that may require enforcement action
Price misrepresentation is prohibited under Alaska Statute 45.50.471, which classifies deceptive or misleading pricing practices as unlawful in the conduct of commerce. Violations may result in civil penalties ranging from $1,000 to $25,000 per violation, depending on the circumstances and severity of noncompliance.
“We prefer cooperation and quick corrections, but accuracy isn’t optional,” Cox said. “We’re also committed to holding businesses accountable when they fail to correct known issues.”
The Department of Law is encouraging consumers to report pricing discrepancies to the Consumer Protection Unit at consumerprotection@alaska.gov.
State officials say the initiative reflects growing concern over household costs in Alaska, where consumers already face some of the highest food prices in the nation due to transportation costs, supply chain challenges, and market concentration.
5 thoughts on “Alaska AG launches statewide grocery price-accuracy crackdown as food prices creep”
I’ve seen it multiple times and questioned the cashier in my polite hospitable voice not accusing the cashier or store of liars.
The cashiers and PC supervisors always changed voided and changed the price of an item. It’s always been a computer error. I doubt Ak grocer managers and supervisors pricing inventory are intentionally lying.
The mistakes likely reflects Ak culture of producing sloppy work not properly working to working hurriedly producing less work quality like matching sales prices up to barcodes. Just like Alaska education isn’t producing readers.
I wouldn’t be one to report a business to government just so a bloated government can take even more money from a business.
Doesn’t the Attorney General of Alaska have enough work to do than go after retail grocer businesses for extra money for a state government that needs to rightsize itself and reduce spending on bureaucrats.
Like crack down on Alaska’s Office of Children’s Services.
If what you are saying is true, then there would be instances of where the product was sold cheaper than the price listed. I have had many instances where the cost at the register was higher but cannot think of ever where the cost was lower. This is done by the company on purpose.
This is just the magician trick of keeping your eye on the Tator Tots when the real potato heist is the Attorney Generals office not wanting you to look at the Price Gouging, Price Fixing and Monopoly happening in the fuel supply system..
A mismarked bag of potato chips is small potatoes compared to $9-10 gas on the west coast of Alaska.
Do you think a hotel manager is intentionally trying to rob you because their housekeeping service is full of errors?
No. He can’t know all that the housekeeping is doing or not doing in the rooms.
All he can do is correct your bill with a comp or give you a gift for your trouble before going to his Housekeeping manager to correct the housekeepers
Just saying critically think more than just what this state attorney general is saying before putting a business through a government investigation
wow, why isn’t the AG interested in the fraud in the cps and aps? the lack of prosecuting perjurers and gang stalkers? or the guardianship program, why isn’t he investigating his predecessor? taylor’s lack of action endangered more than my life. how about going after the apd officers that doxxed my husband and instructing a stranger to traspass onto our private property, who else did they give our address to? how about finding missing persons? remember tony kronos?