Arkansas Joins FTC Lawsuit Accusing Dollar General of Charging More Than Advertised Prices
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin joined a lawsuit accusing Dollar General of deceptive pricing. The suit says shoppers paid more at the register than advertised shelf prices. Griffin joined the Federal Trade Commission and 19 other states. The suit names Dollar General Corporation. It alleges long-running deceptive pricing practices. Arkansas and the 19 states joined the FTC in filing the complaint.
The complaint says Dollar General routinely charged more at the register. The charges exceeded prices on shelves, price tags and advertisements. The overcharges cost consumers millions of dollars. Thousands of stores took advantage of vulnerable shoppers. The stores extracted millions in unlawful overcharges with insufficient safeguards.
Dollar General received tens of thousands of consumer complaints. Customers said the company did not honor advertised prices. The complaints show widespread consumer harm nationwide. The company knew it harmed consumers through the complaints it received. The complaint alleges the company failed to correct the issue despite extensive corporate knowledge.
The other states joining the lawsuit are:
- Alabama
- Arizona
- California
- Connecticut
- Florida
- Illinois
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Nebraska
- New Jersey
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Tennessee
- Utah
- Wisconsin
Griffin issued a statement. “Arkansans shouldn’t have to pay more at the register than the price they were promised on the shelf,” Griffin said. “Businesses have a responsibility to advertise their prices honestly, and those that deceive consumers must be held accountable.” Griffin said his office will keep cracking down on deceptive practices.
State attorneys general enforce consumer protection laws in their states. The FTC enforces federal laws against deceptive business practices. Lawsuits of this kind seek to stop the practice and hold companies accountable.
The practices are alleged to violate the FTC Act, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and Arkansas law.
