FTC Sues Dollar General Amid Growing Consumer Doubts Over Pricing

Americans don’t trust price tags anymore.Digital labels on shelves enable retailers to alter prices in an instant, and artificial intelligence has made it easier for stores to set rates as demand fluctuates.That has led to greater scrutiny from shoppers and regulators.Even the old analog methods have come under fire.On Monday, the Federal Trade Commission sued Dollar General, the nation’s largest dollar store chain, and accused the retailer of charging consumers more than advertised.

The agency’s suit was joined by 20 states, including Tennessee, where Dollar General is based.In the complaint, the F.T.C.said Dollar General’s stores had not employed enough staff to manually update the labels on shelves quickly enough to ensure that all prices were accurate.

It also said prices at the cash register often differed from the weekly circulars that the retailer had distributed.“The company has routinely charged customers more at the register than the prices displayed on shelves, price tags and advertisements,” the F.T.C.said in its lawsuit.

“This pattern of inaccurate pricing has persisted for years and affects millions of purchases across the country.“Dollar General denied the allegations in a statement and said it was surprised to see the lawsuit after trying to resolve the matter with the F.T.C.without litigation.

The company said it would “defend this litigation vigorously.”The situation at Dollar General reflects a broader distrust of price tags among Americans, who have become more skeptical and vigilant about prices as they try to manage rising grocery and fuel costs.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe....