Walmart faces lawsuit that claims it fixes prices at checkout

CFRA Senior Vice President Arun Sundaram discusses Walmart and Target’s earnings, his expectations for their stocks and the changing way consumers shop.

Walmart is facing a class action lawsuit that claims the retailer overcharged customers through “deceptive and unfair pricing practices.”

Plaintiff Yoram Kahn alleged that the world’s largest retailer “exploits consumers in Illinois and across the country through deceptive and unfair pricing practices.”

Kahn argued that while the price discrepancies were small, “they add up to hundreds of millions of dollars every year.”

“Kahn alleges that Walmart is aware of the discrepancy between prices on the shelf and prices at the checkout and that its unfair and deceptive pricing practices are widespread and ongoing,” he said.

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Walmart has always worked with celebrities to create their own affordable product lines. (Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images)

Kahn claimed that on August 2, 2022, he was shopping at a Walmart in Niles, Illinois, and was guided by the list prices but was offered a significant markup at checkout.

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“When Kahn made his purchases, the actual prices for these six items were ten to fifteen percent higher than the shelf prices,” the court ruled.

“In total, Kahn paid Walmart $1.89 for the six items, almost seven percent of the total pre-tax amount on his bill,” they said. “Not much change for Kahn as an individual, no doubt, but remember the size of Walmart’s business.”

Reversing a lower court judge’s decision Wednesday, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago ruled that consumers can try to prove that Walmart used a deceptive “bait and switch” method that violates state consumer protection laws.

The plaintiff alleged that Walmart violated the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act, the Illinois Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act, and other states’ consumer protection laws.

Self-checkout, Walmart, North Carolina. (Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The court also disagreed with Walmart’s argument that providing receipts after a purchase eliminates any unfairness resulting from incorrect shelf pricing.

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Bentonville, Arkansas-based Walmart did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.