Woolworths NZ facing charges over pricing and 'specials'
The Commerce Commission filed charges against Woolworths in the Auckland District Court. PHOTO: RNZ
The Commerce Commission has filed criminal charges against Woolworths NZ for alleged inaccurate pricing and misleading specials that may have breached the Fair Trading Act.
The commission filed the charges against Woolworths in the Auckland District Court.
It indicated in December last year that it would be filing separate criminal charges against Woolworths and two Pak'nSave supermarkets.
At that time, the commission said there were ongoing issues with pricing in the supermarket sector and the operators may have breached the Fair Trading Act.
In a December statement, deputy chair Anne Callinan said operators should know what the expectations were.
"Supermarkets have long been on notice about the importance of accurate and clear pricing and specials, and we're not satisfied with the continuing issues we're seeing across the industry.
"Pricing accuracy is a consumer right and an expectation of a competitive market. The major supermarkets are large, well-resourced businesses that should invest the time and effort to get pricing and promotions right."
The charges were filed to remind all supermarkets that they are expected to fix the pricing accuracy issues and implement better processes, Callinan said.
In a statement when the charges were announced, Woolworths managing director Spencer Sonn said it was important customers could trust prices advertised at their supermarkets, but sometimes errors occurred.
Woolworths said it has cooperated with the Commerce Commission's pricing investigation for some time.
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