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Gastonia Dollar General among 10 NC stores fined for overcharging customers

Dollar General stores in Albemarle, Boone and Gastonia were among 10 businesses statewide fined for overcharging customers.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Dollar General in Gastonia was among 10 North Carolina businesses that were fined by state officials for price scanning errors that overcharged customers, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services announced. 

The Dollar General on Hickory Grove Road in Gastonia was fined $2,130 after an initial inspection found a 20% error rate in March. A follow-up inspection in June found an error rate of 6.33% at checkout. The store passed a follow-up inspection last month. 

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The Walmart at Bryton Town Center in Huntersville was fined $1,695. An April inspection found a 6% error rate in a 100-item check. The store was reinspected in May and state officials found a 2.67% error rate. The store is scheduled to be reinspected. 

Auto Zone on South Boulevard in Charlotte paid $975 in penalties after multiple inspections. The initial inspection in April found 12 items in a 50-item lot were overcharging at checkout. The store's follow-up inspection showed an error rate of 4.33% and Auto Zone will be reinspected. 

Dollar General stores in Albemarle and Boone were also fined for price scan errors. The Albemarle store was fined $1,385 and the Boone store was hit with a $2,240 penalty. 

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"This work focuses on ensuring that North Carolinians are charged the prices they see on the shelves and not more," Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler said in a release. "I'm happy to see that this report is shorter than previous quarters as compliance has improved statewide." 

The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services conducts periodic, unannounced inspections of price-scanner systems at businesses statewide. If a store has more than a 2% error rate on overcharges, inspectors discuss their findings with store management and schedule a more detailed follow-up. Undercharges are also reported but do not count against stores. Consumers can call 984-236-4750 to report overcharges to state officials. 

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