Coles, Woolworths worry shoppers with price tag overhaul: 'Now they can dupe us and we can't prove it'

Navigating the aisles of Australia's supermarket giants, Coles and Woolworths, has become a new experience for shoppers as both retailers roll out a significant change to their pricing displays.

This shift, however, has sparked a debate among consumers, with some expressing concerns over the potential for being misled on discounts and prices.



The change in question involves the introduction of electronic price tags, which are set to replace traditional paper-based labels.

While this technological advancement promises several benefits, it has also led to some shoppers fearing they could be more easily 'duped' about prices.


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Coles and Woolworths have introduced electronic price tags. Image source: Shutterstock.


In recent incidents, customers have reported finding 'special' price tags that, when lifted, reveal a different, often lower, original price.

For instance, a Coles customer discovered a half-price label advertising a pack of Mount Franklin sparkling water for $9.50, reduced from $19. However, the tag underneath indicated the original price was $16.10.

Similarly, at Woolworths, a shopper found a bottle of Banana Boat sunscreen advertised as half price at $11, down from $22, when the tag underneath showed it had previously cost $14.70.



Both supermarkets have attributed these discrepancies to human error, with Woolworths suggesting that the transition to electronic tags could help rectify the issue.

However, this new system has raised concerns among customers who worry they will no longer be able to verify previous prices.

'Woolworths has switched to digital. So now they can dupe us, and we can't prove it,' one shopper commented.

Another added, 'No more looking at the previous price tags and finding out their current “special price” is more than what the previous price is.'



Industry experts have offered differing opinions on the matter.

Gary Mortimer, a Retail Expert, believes that electronic price labels, which are set centrally and then dispersed to stores, are less likely to result in errors.

He explained, 'One of the challenges of paper-based tickets was that, in a store with thousands and thousands of items, often a ticket may remain or may be removed. That’s often where you get price confusion.'

On the other hand, Matt Grudnoff, a Senior Economist at the Australia Institute, warned that electronic labels could make it harder for customers to track price changes.

'I’d be interested to know how often [ticketing errors are] happening,' he said.

'If people do see a pattern, then that’s something for the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).'

'It may be an error but if it is occurring regularly then that’s something that we should probably look into and ask Coles and Woolies to please explain.'

Grudnoff urged shoppers to report any instances of misleading and deceptive advertising to the ACCC.



The ACCC has recently flagged that it is closely monitoring reports from consumers alleging false or misleading 'was/now' or other pricing 'specials' advertised by the supermarkets.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has also announced a separate, formal investigation by the consumer watchdog.

The shift to electronic tickets is not unique to Australian supermarkets.

Mortimer noted that there has been a global trend towards LED or electronic shelf tickets.

'The reasons for that is it reduces the amount of consumption of paper, it reduces the amount of print that is required and it also expedites shelf price changeovers,' he explained.



Woolworths began testing the electronic labels in 2021 and has installed nearly 5.5 million of the labels across more than 250 of its stores.

Coles is also trialling electronic tickets in some stores.

A Woolworths spokesperson explained, 'Electronic shelf labels are designed to replace paper tickets in-store, reducing the burden on our store teams who would otherwise be manually adding and removing hundreds of promotional tickets.'

In addition to reducing paper consumption, Woolworths claims that the electronic labels have resulted in a 'reduction in errors'.
Key Takeaways
  • Shoppers at Coles and Woolworths have expressed concerns about misleading discount prices; some suspect electronic price tags could be used to manipulate pricing without leaving a paper trail.
  • Both supermarkets attribute discrepancies between advertised specials and shelf prices to human error.
  • Experts are divided on the issue, with some seeing electronic price labels as less prone to error, while others worry about the transparency of past price comparisons.
  • The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has been alerted to potential false or misleading pricing practices, and electronic pricing systems are under scrutiny.
What are your thoughts on this shift to electronic price tags, dear members? Have you experienced any issues with pricing at your local supermarket? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below.
 
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If your eyesight's not great, you have to bring your "fine-print" reading glasses to see some of these tags. There's a problem when the tags are up high or down low especially for older or disabled people. The thing that annoys me most about them is that the "price per weight" line is in font no bigger than fly shit and in some instances is even smaller when they have 2 tags in the space for one as in the herbs and spices section. I also find that, in order to see "specials", you have to scan a lot more tags as the colour used is not really obvious.
 
This has been going on for as long as can remember I always check the price under the so called “half price tags” and I refuse to buy the items at the jacked up prices, its time we shoppers took a stand against the major supermarkets ripping consumers off. 😡😡
 
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Just another way for them to rip us off and not be upfront and honest. Technology is taking over, without consultation with their customers and some of them just don't cope with these new technological times.
 
Tracking price changes and errors is one thing. However, my thoughts are towards the staff that are doing the tag updates. There goes their jobs. This is just an extension to the checkouts, it’s all about reducing their labour costs and resulting in higher unemployment, my question is how many labour hours will this reduce….. 😡
 
This has been going on for as long as can remember I always check the price under the so called “half price tags” and I refuse to buy the items at the jacked up prices, its time we shoppers took a stand against the major supermarkets ripping consumers off. 😡😡
I agree if the shoppers took a stand they would have no choice about doing just half of the things they do but they know that we dont have much choice now as we only have Aldi and IGA if you dont go to Coles or Woolworth. That is just cutting staff again nothing more and more profit for them
 
Tracking price changes and errors is one thing. However, my thoughts are towards the staff that are doing the tag updates. There goes their jobs. This is just an extension to the checkouts, it’s all about reducing their labour costs and resulting in higher unemployment, my question is how many labour hours will this reduce….. 😡
But someone is updating the digital tags.
 
This has been going on for as long as can remember I always check the price under the so called “half price tags” and I refuse to buy the items at the jacked up prices, its time we shoppers took a stand against the major supermarkets ripping consumers off. 😡😡
There is one sure way.... STOP SHOPPING THERE.... FOREVER.
 
My concern which I expressed to a Woolworths manager a couple weeks ago was that the way caned and bottled fruit was stacked in their box over hanging the shelf it hid the price tag from view. I pointed out that the unit price must be clearly visible which it was clearly not nor was the price either.
 
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