File photo: A Family Dollar store on Capital Circle Southwest in Tallahassee, Florida, January 29, 2025. The Bushranger / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0; cropped and resized. Adapted image: CC BY-SA 4.0.
Family Dollar agreed to a $63 million settlement with the Federal Trade Commission and 17 states over allegations that shoppers routinely paid more at checkout than the prices shown on shelves, price tags and advertisements, the agency said Thursday.
The proposed order calls for a $40 million consumer redress fund for eligible shoppers and a $20 million discount program for Family Dollar customers. Payments exceeding $3 million would also go to the states, according to the FTC.
The FTC said the stipulated final order takes effect when approved and signed by a federal district judge. The FTC said it filed the complaint and stipulated final order in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia after a 2-0 commission vote.
The FTC alleged that thousands of stores overcharged customers and that the retailer failed to fix its pricing practices despite consumer complaints, failed inspections and earlier enforcement actions. Those are the allegations in the complaint, not findings from a completed trial.
The complaint also covers prices displayed on Family Dollar's website and mobile app. Consumers reported being unable to access or redeem advertised Smart Coupons because the app did not work, the agency said.
Under the proposed order, Family Dollar would have to set up a pricing-accuracy program, monitor and verify prices, train employees to find discrepancies and promptly correct errors. The program would be independently assessed and certified annually.
The company would also have to post clear notices in stores and on its digital platforms telling customers about eligibility for the redress fund. The announcement does not set out a public claims deadline or say that payments are already available.
A separate FTC case against Dollar General over similar allegations remains ongoing. That company is not the retailer settling this case.
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