Ralph’s Grocery Co. and its parent company, Kroger, were charged with various misdemeanors today after overcharging customers for weighed and prepackaged food at fourteen different SoCal stores. L.A. Daily News reports that the local grocery giant was the subject of a small sting at the start of the year in which 27 violations of overcharging were recorded. What did they find?
The violations mostly concerned packaging materials on weighed and pre-made products, or ice glaze on frozen foods, being wrongfully added into the cost at the time of purchase. Charged with fourteen counts of “false and misleading advertising, 18 violations of unlawful computation of value, nine violations of selling prepackaged commodities in less quantity than represented, and 18 violations of false labeling” and with both companies each facing fines and penalties up to $256,000, Ralph’s reps are guaranteeing the public, and hopefully the Valley–where eight of the offending stores are located–that the charges are being taken very seriously while amending any violations it can find.
Ralphs, Kroger accused of overcharging in LA [L.A. Daily News]
