A TikToker Accidentally Spent $1700 On Cucumbers At Whole Foods
Are you an overly trusting consumer? Do you simply pay for your groceries without paying attention to how much you owe? Then, do you fold up the receipt and shove it into your pocket without giving it even a cursory gander? Sure, there are times when your faith in the human race and the technology it created is admirable, but this is not one of those times. You could be getting seriously overcharged for your purchases and you don't even know it.
Erroneous charges have been happening for years. In 2010, ABC reported that customers were overcharged between $1 billion and $2.5 billion each year due to issues with store scanners. If a store fails to input sales and other reduced prices into their system, or they charge tax when they're not supposed to, it adds up to a heftier bill than you deserve. It seems that this problem is becoming increasingly common all these years later. WRAL News reported that the number of grocers charging too much for products has exploded with fines levied against retailers on a steep incline. Since grocery prices just broke a 13-year record, no one needs to pay extra for someone else's mistakes.
While many shoppers have likely experienced small errors on their grocery receipts, few make a regular habit of examining every charge. The following jaw-dropping story may just serve as a cautionary tale to those who don't.
A shopper got charged for 593 cucumbers
When a TikTok user returned to their vehicle and pulled out their Whole Foods receipt, they made a hair-raising discovery. They had erroneously been charged for purchasing 593 English cucumbers. Yuppers. 593 cucumbers. While many would have expressed shock upon hearing that their grocery bill total was over $1725, this shopper had been too busy bagging their purchases to notice.
What happened to cause this massive overcharge? The surprisingly calm shopper explained that the PLU code for organic cucumbers is 593. The cashier accidentally entered this number as the quantity of cucumbers being purchased and, poof, the Tiktoker ended up forking out well over $1000 for something they didn't buy. Thankfully, they did get their money back.
How do you protect yourself from mistakes like this Whole Foods debacle? Canadian Budget Binder recommends reading every single receipt before leaving the store. If you wait until you're home, they warn that you are less likely to take steps to reclaim the funds you overpaid. Although a charge for 593 cucumbers will likely make anyone spring into action.