Praneeta Mahajan
Hamilton, August 20, 2024
New Zealanders may be losing “tens of millions of dollars a year” due to pricing errors in major supermarkets, according to the Grocery Commissioner, Pierre van Heerden. In response to ongoing concerns, Mr Van Heerden has issued a strong challenge to the country’s leading supermarket chains, Foodstuffs and Woolworths NZ, urging them to improve and publicise their refund policies.
Mr Van Heerden emphasised that accurate and transparent pricing is not just a consumer right but a fundamental expectation in a competitive market. However, he lamented that the Commerce Commission continues to receive reports of misleading or inaccurate pricing in New Zealand supermarkets.
“Kiwi consumers expect and deserve better,” he stated. “The continuing level of pricing errors happening across the major supermarkets is simply unacceptable, and I do not believe the major supermarkets are doing enough to fix these problems and get it right for the future.”
Mandating Transparency and Accountability
To address these concerns, Mr Van Heerden announced plans to introduce a mandatory disclosure standard requiring supermarkets to regularly report on customer complaints, particularly those related to pricing and promotional issues. This transparency, he believes, will empower consumers and ensure that their complaints are taken seriously.
“Consumers should be able to trust that the price advertised is what they will pay,” he asserted. “The groceries sector is a $25 billion a year business, so even if errors only make up a very small percentage of sales, the total overcharge paid by Kiwis at the checkout would run to tens of millions of dollars every year. This is unacceptable.”
Mr Van Heerden also criticised the current processes for recording customer complaints, pointing out that the lack of clarity and effective reporting hinders supermarkets’ ability to identify and rectify potential compliance issues. “Complaint data is a helpful source of information to identify trends and issues so they can be remedied,” he said, stressing the need for comprehensive policies and staff training in this area.
Supermarkets Urged to Enhance Refund Policies
In addition to improving transparency, Mr Van Heerden called on supermarkets to strengthen and promote their refund policies. He argued that a well-promoted and generous refund policy could play a crucial role in motivating customers to report pricing discrepancies.
“Current refund policies across the major supermarkets are either absent, inadequate, or not advertised clearly,” he noted. “A generous and well-promoted refund policy will help empower and motivate customers.”
The Grocery Commission has set clear expectations for supermarkets, including reviewing and amending refund policies to demonstrate a commitment to pricing integrity, prominently promoting these policies, and ensuring robust systems to record and categorise all complaints.
While the major supermarkets have responded positively to these recommendations, Mr Van Heerden made it clear that the Commission will be closely monitoring their actions. “We will be watching to see if they follow up their words with action,” he warned.
These initiatives are in line with the Grocery Industry Competition Act 2023 (GICA), which enables the introduction of public disclosure standards on customer complaints about pricing and promotional issues. The goal is to create a more transparent and consumer-friendly grocery sector in New Zealand, ensuring that Kiwi shoppers get the fair deal they deserve.
Praneeta Mahajan is an Indian Newslink reporter based in Hamilton.
