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Walmart to Pay $5.6 Million to Settle California Overcharging Suit

Prosecutors called the deal an enforcement of California’s False Advertising and Unfair Competition laws.

A Walmart logo is displayed outside one of their stores on August 2, 2025 in San Diego, California.
The company logo is shown on the front of the building at a Walmart store on May 18, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois.
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Walmart to pay $5.6m to settle lawsuit accusing company of overcharging California shoppers (Unsplash)

Overview

  • Four county district attorneys alleged that Walmart sold produce, baked goods and prepared items underweight while charging prices above the lowest advertised rate.
  • Under the settlement, Walmart will pay $5.5 million in civil penalties plus about $139,909 to reimburse investigation costs.
  • The action was brought by the district attorney offices of Santa Clara, Sonoma, San Diego and San Bernardino counties and follows a similar $2.1 million overcharging settlement in 2012.
  • Walmart must staff its roughly 280 California stores with employees responsible for verifying prices and weights to prevent future discrepancies.
  • Consumers in the affected counties are encouraged to report any pricing or weight errors to their local Weights and Measures divisions.