CNBC’s Wal-Mart Documentary

WalMart gives low prices with one hand……and steals with the other. After devoting several months doing my own investigation due to overcharges I encountered a store employee who volunteered this interesting insight;

“The corporate mainframe can cancel lower prices we set at the store level”

During my 4th (and last) conversation with a corporate buyer she finally admitted to an awareness of this problem but never put pen to paper and formally responded.

The store manager has the discretion to lower prices but that price is not always recognized by the corporate pricing system, which may reset the price. The end result is a product display price which is deceptive since the customer is overcharged at the register. My investigation was not limited to Walmart. After being overcharged at several other chain stores I made an inquiry and also determined how long it took the store to correct the overcharge. Jewel typically had the problem corrected with 10 minutes. A manager at a different store told me they contact corporate BEFORE implementing a price change to prevent problems. Walmart proved to be the least capable (and least interested) in preventing overcharges

After being overcharged several times at Walmart I cornered the department manager and the store manager (on two occasions) and neither had a plausible explanation (the district manager offered generic obfuscation the first time and failed to respond the other times). The only instance of an overcharge which could be attributed to human error was the time the stockman put the canned soup in the wrong area.

The other THREE overcharge incidents were clearly an example of intentional scam, clearly evident after they proved incapable of correcting the problem after being notified.

After being overcharged on a produce item I called TEN supercenters in a 100 mile radius and 7 of those stores were overcharging on the same product. I presented the case to gang of amoral vultures (lawyers) for class action remedy. They ended up absconding with my case and filing it a different state with a different class plaintiff.

Consumers in every state should be demanding to learn why the AG or other state regulatory agencies haven’t stopped the overcharge ripoffs. I contacted a store inspector in Vermont, mentioned in a press release, and he confirmed the problem I was aware of; he could go into a WMart location on Monday and despite having all overcharges corrected he could go back TWO days later and determine some of the corrected product prices had reverted back to overcharges at the register!! Confirmation of an internal glitch. I concluded many states must be content “making the rounds” every few months and collecting those generous fines for failing to comply with pricing accuracy laws. In order for Walmart to absorb those $5,000 hits without blinking indicates how much they had to be reeling in by their reluctance to implement pricing accuracy policies. It would be easy to get the impression the states who failed to address the problem, despite being aware of the pricing system glitches, were primarily intent on collecting fines.

ANOTHER SCAM; Walmart was reselling customer oil. I first noticed this scam in 1996 and once again 9 years later in 2005. After crunching the numbers I determined Walmart was profiting 12 million every year on this “minor” scam.

My cars held 4.1 and 4.5 quarts of oil but I was never offered the remainder of the 5th quart despite the fact I purchased 5 quarts. Although the majority of Walmart oil comes from bulk tanks about 20 percent of customers purchase oil off the shelf. I then noticed a few dozen (partial content) containers of oil out in the oil change bay…..oil which was purchased by a customer and RESOLD to another customer.

After kicking shins at Walmart once again they determined it was time to end this scam (at least in my area) and now place all unused customer oil in a clear plastic bag…..and then put in the customers car after sealing it. That was the official policy before my causing a stink but it was ignored.