Pak’nSave Silverdale has pleaded guilty to seven charges of misleading customers over pricing, following a Commerce Commission investigation into alleged breaches of the Fair Trading Act.

Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis has now written to all major supermarket chains, urging them to clean up their act.

The charges against the Silverdale store, and a similar case in Hamilton, highlight problems that hit close to home for Coasties.

Willis said she was “disappointed” to remind major retailers like Foodstuffs North Island and Woolworths that they have a legal obligation to ensure prices on shelves match those at the checkout.

“I am concerned to hear from the Commerce Commission and Consumer NZ that misleading promotional practices and pricing errors are still occurring,” she said.

Customers have reportedly paid more at checkout than the advertised price, been misled by ‘specials’ that weren’t actually discounted, and faced multibuy deals that cost more than buying items individually.

Willis says tougher penalties are on the table.

Australia allows fines of up to A$50 million for similar breaches.

New Zealand’s cap is currently just $600,000.

She’s asked supermarkets for an update on what they’re doing to fix the issues.

If you spot a pricing discrepancy, you can report it to the Commerce Commission at www.comcom.govt.nz

It shouldn’t be your job to monitor supermarket pricing, but if something feels off, there’s a way to raise it.

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