Woolworths responds as shoppers claim self-serve checkouts charge difference prices for same items

Confused shoppers are claiming Woolworths self-serve checkouts are charging different amounts for the same shop.

Colleen, from New South Wales, took to TikTok to share her story of how she was charged two different amounts when she scanned the same items through different registers. 

While the mum wasn’t bothered by the tiny five-cent discrepancy, she said she was ‘curious’ about how often the scales were checked and if the retailer makes money off the price differences. 

The viral clip sparked a lively discussion with one customer saying they were charged an extra $20 between check-outs prompting the supermarket to issue a response encouraging customers to alert staff to any disparities. 

‘I was just in my local Woolies and I needed a cash scanner, so a lady opened one for me that had the checkout closed sign on it and there was probably a reason for that,’ Colleen said in the video. 

‘I went along and scanned my groceries, it wasn’t a lot it was literally $7.45 cents worth so I go to pay, I push the pay now button – nothing happens.’

Colleen said she called over the attendant to help but decided to rescan her items again at the working machine next to her. 

‘I scanned everything and it came out as $7.50,’ she said. 

‘A whole five cents isn’t a big deal to me at all, that’s not what I’m saying here. What I am saying is how many people aren’t aware this actually happens?’

The 40-year-old mum said she understood there would be some minor differences between each scale but wondered how often the machines are calibrated. 

‘And yeah, there’s probably swings and roundabouts where people are paying more or they’re paying less over the span of a full shop,’ she said. 

‘But how much is Woolies actually making from that? I’m very curious,’ she added joking in the comments section she didn’t think ‘it’s some big conspiracy that Woolies is trying to take over the world five cents at a time’. 

While the mum wasn’t bothered by the five-cent discrepancy, she said she was ‘curious’ about how often the scales were checked and if the retailer makes money off the price differences

Colleen’s clip has been viewed more than 25,000 times and attracted a barrage of responses from shoppers sharing similar experiences and theories as to why the checkouts would charge varied amounts. 

‘This has happened to me and the first machine I used froze at $190 so I moved to the next machine and it came to $170,’ one customer alleged. 

‘The items could’ve been placed differently, did you place them or drop them, did one roll, were all items positioned on the scale correctly? etc,’ a second asked. 

‘Some would be ‘overcharging’ others would be ‘undercharging’ so they probably cancel each other out,’ a third commented. 

The clip sparked a discussion with one customer saying they were charged an extra $20 between check-outs prompting the supermarket to respond encouraging customers to alert staff to any disparities

One viewer who works at Woolworths said the self-serve scales are checked every morning.  

‘Any major difference in weight the machine is turned off until serviced – but no one really tells you why a machine is down,’ they said.  

‘When you start so you boot it up thinking it’s fine when it could be under or over weighing items,’ they wrote adding it can be ‘frustrating’ for both staff and customers. 

A Woolworths spokesperson responded to the claims saying customers should alert staff if they notice a price difference between checkouts so it can be investigated. 

‘We are committed to ensuring the accuracy of all trade measurement scales across our stores in line with strict regulations and test our checkout scales daily,’ they said.

‘We strongly encourage this customer to reach out to our customer care team or the store directly, in order for us to investigate the items in the transaction and see what has caused the discrepancy.’