Lowe’s must pay $1M penalty to settle overcharging complaint

Lowe’s Home Center. (File photo courtesy of media.lowes.com) Lowe’s has been ordered to pay just over $1 million to resolve a lawsuit in which the company was accused of overcharging some customers and engaging in false advertising. The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office made the announcement Wednesday. The civil complaint, filed in San Diego Superior Court by a coalition of prosecutors, alleged that the home improvement retailer charged some California customers prices that were higher than their lowest advertised or posted prices. As part of the judgment, Lowe’s will pay the civil penalty, plus investigative costs and restitution to support future consumer protection enforcement efforts. An injunction also was issued that requires Lowe’s to create a new price accuracy policy, conduct internal audits and agree not to raise prices on weekends. According to the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, which took part in the complaint, price accuracy violations were found at Lowe’s stores in 10 counties between 2018 and 2022. Among those, there was an average overcharge of 19.3 percent, with 4.4 percent of items involved. The settlement was reached with no admission of liability from Lowe’s. In addition to San Diego and Los Angeles, the complaint was jointly filed by district attorney’s offices in Orange, Alameda, San Bernardino and Sonoma counties. “Retailers must charge consumers the lowest advertised price – that’s the law,” San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan said in a statement.