Walgreens Prices Are Unfair, Class Action Lawsuit Contends

An Oregon customer has filed a class action lawsuit challenging Walgreens prices, saying that the pharmacy and retail chain regularly charges customers more than the advertised price for items that they purchase.

The Walgreens prices class action lawsuit was filed by Tim Carr, who says he was surprised to find that he was charged almost twice the advertised amount for an eight-pack of Wyler’s Light Pink Lemonade drink mix.

According to Carr, Walgreens makes a practice of regularly overcharging customers hoping that most customers will not notice the inconsistency.

Carr recounts his experience with Walgreens, explaining that on Aug. 2, he purchased his lemonade drink mix after selecting it from the shelf. He explains that the advertised price was $1. He says he took the product to the register with other goods that he wanted to purchase and paid with his debit card. Allegedly, his debit card was charged and he was given a receipt.

Carr says that when he looked at his receipt, the drink mix had been rung up for $1.80. At a full 80 cents more than what was advertised, Carr asserts that Walgreens had almost doubled what was advertised. 

The Walgreens refund policy class action lawsuit says that Carr complained to the store management and was refused the 80 cent refund that he requested. He claims that when he complained to the Walgreens management, he was told that Walgreens “has collected the overcharge from literally thousands of other customers.”

Carr says that because so many other customers have been affected by this scheme, he has decided to pursue his claims against Walgreens in the form of a class action lawsuit. He seeks to represent a Class of all Oregon consumers who were charged more by Walgreens for a “multipack consumer good” that was subject to Oregon’s Unit Pricing Law than the price that was advertised on the shelf. Carr aims to include all consumers who made a purchase after Aug. 11, 2019. 

He says that it will be possible to determine who falls into the Class based on Walgreens’ receipts, the transaction records kept by the retailer, and claims forms that can be submitted by potential Class Members.

Allegedly, many consumers were financially injured by Walgreens, because they paid more than they had agreed to pay for items.

Carr asserts that, had he and other customers been aware of the full amount they would be charged for their items, they would not have agreed to purchase the item at all or would not have agreed to pay as much for them.

However, Carr notes that consumers would be unlikely to pursue claims against Walgreens on their own, given the high cost of litigation and the relatively small amount of the individual injuries. In his eyes, these circumstances warrant a class action lawsuit, because it allows many customers to seek compensation and justice. 

Carr argues that Walgreens is well aware of the overcharging, and uses the practice as a way to make money off of unwitting consumers. Additionally, Carr says that Walgreens is well aware that the practice is unethical and is a violation of Oregon state law.

The Walgreens prices misrepresentation class action lawsuit states that Walgreens relies not only on customers not noticing the overcharges, but on their inability to file a lawsuit and pursue the issue. Carr stresses that a class action lawsuit is an essential way to address this issue, because “absent class treatment, Walgreen’s alleged wrongdoing would go unabated,” and no proposed Class Member would be compensated.

Additionally, a class action lawsuit would reportedly allow all proposed Class Members to receive the same verdict in their Walgreens prices claims.

According to theWalgreens refund policy class action lawsuit, Walgreens has violated Oregon’s Unit Pricing Law. The complaint explains that the law requires sellers to provide a clear display of the price for the product that represents the “total retail price of the commodity,” either on the product itself or near where the product is sold. Because the products for which Carr and many other consumers were overcharged were consumer goods, he says that these products fall under the restrictions of the law.

Have you ever been overcharged for a good or service? How did you respond? Share your experience in the comments below.

Carr is represented by Michael Fuller of OlsenDaines and by Kelly D. Jones of The Law Office of Kelly D. Jones.

The Walgreens Prices Class Action Lawsuit is Tim Carr v. Walgreen Co., Case No. 3:20-cv-01349-SI, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, Portland Division. 

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