Repeat Walmart shoppers may be entitled to financial compensation thanks to a new class action settlement.
In a lawsuit originally filed in 2022 and then amended in 2023, the retailer is accused of three major deceptive practices: falsely inflating the weight of products sold by weight; surcharge for products sold by weight in liquidation; and mislabeling the weight of packaged products.
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“Walmart uses unfair and deceptive business practices to deceptively, misleadingly and unfairly steal, for Walmart’s financial benefit, its customers’ hard-earned dollars,” the lawsuit reads. “Walmart knew and calculated that its practices would mislead consumers and continued those practices despite knowledge of the deception and harm it caused and causes.”
The retailer reached a settlement late last year for $45 million, and now, all Walmart shoppers who purchased a good, thoughtful product (such as produce, meat, seafood) or citrus fruit packaged in the U.S. or Porto Rico from October 19, 2018 to January 29, 2024, may be eligible for a refund of up to $500.
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Walmart denied the allegations and said CNN that the company intends to “continue providing our customers with low prices every day to help them save money on the products they want and need. We still deny the allegations, however we believe a settlement is in the best interests of both parties” .
How to request your share
Walmart has listed several forms of payment for eligible individuals on its website. Customers with receipts can receive 2% of the total cost of merchandise purchased (weighed and citrus) up to $500. Buyers without a receipt can still receive between $10 and $25, depending on the number of purchases.
Walmart did not immediately respond Entrepreneurrequest for comment.
Customers can file a complaint here until June 5, 2024 and can attempt to recover receipts from the online retailer.
A final hearing to approve the settlement is scheduled for June 12, and pending appeals, payments will be processed and sent via ACH, Venmo, Zelle, a virtual prepaid Mastercard, or a paper check upon request.