It’s happened to all of us - you’ve finished your weekly shop and headed home only to realise you’ve paid more than you were expecting.

Sure, we’d all love to save a few extra bucks, but did you know you can often end supermarket billing blunders by simply checking your receipt?

One shopper did just that and discovered she had saved $82.56 by comparing the prices at Coles and ALDI.

A photo of the shopper’s grocery haul. Credit: Facebook/ALDI Mums.

Sharing her experience on the ALDI Mums Facebook group, the shopper wrote: ‘'I’ll be checking my receipt whilst in store from now on. A few items were double scanned, and some vegetables were falsely selected.’

‘My ALDI vs Coles comparison will match what was charged on my receipt, minus a few Easter activity packs from those awesome middle isles in ALDI.’

To compare prices online, she matched branded products and quantity to determine the most cost-effective option for her.

ALDI exclusive products were compared to what’s available at Coles and matched to the closest grams from the lowest price, including specials.

If something was unavailable from Coles, the next closest product to match the ALDI product was chosen.

However, this isn’t the only reason you should inspect your receipts after shopping.

Several other members chimed in, recounting similar experiences in which they were overcharged for their groceries.

One user wrote: ‘I ALWAYS check my receipts. They charged me $7 for an avocado once as they put it through as a bag of them!’

‘Coles and Woolies majority of the time, I'll find a mistake, but they are all good at refunds/or giving items for free. Imagine how many people don't check!’

The shopper compared prices of grocery items between Woolworths and Coles. Credit: Woolworths/Coles.

Another claimed they were charged a higher price for a certain kind of apple even though they purchased a cheaper alternative available.

‘Yes, this happened the other day to me! The guy couldn't be bothered searching for Kanzi apples at $4.99 a kilo, so just put them through as a pink lady for $6.99!’ the shopper recounted.

Another added: ‘I also ensure their hands aren’t touching your fruit when weighing them. I read once an old worker was told to hold them to make more weight and profit.’

This is not the first time shoppers were shocked to find out that they were overpaying for their groceries. In this article, we shared how one customer shared the importance of double-checking your receipts when grocery shopping due to minor scanning mistakes that could add to your bill.

Meanwhile, some supermarket staff members expressed disappointment that some customers were too hasty in assuming they were intentionally overcharging them.

As one commenter points out, the staff are not incentivised to rip customers off since they don't receive any commission.

They wrote: ‘There is literally no benefit to employees ripping customers off at supermarkets. We don’t get a commission.’

‘At the end of the day, we get paid a wage, so any increased profit does nothing to us personally.’

‘I’ve worked in retail for over 25 years. It’s horrible how we get treated. People think they can just speak to us like utter garbage,’ another shared.

‘And they think we are doing things on purpose to them and that we are always wrong.’

‘But the handful of delightful beautiful customers we get make it worthwhile.’

Key Takeaways

• Saving money at the supermarket requires checking receipts and comparing prices between different stores.
• A customer compared the total cost of their groceries from Coles and ALDI, saving $82.56 by shopping at ALDI.
• Customers shared their experiences of being overcharged at the checkout and the importance of checking receipts.
• Retail workers also share their perspective on the issue, emphasising that they don't benefit from ripping off customers and suggesting that everyone should check their receipts regardless of their shop.

The recent experience of a shopper who compared prices at Coles and ALDI and saved $82.56 serves as a reminder of the importance of being vigilant with your receipts.

Checking your receipt after grocery shopping is an essential habit that can help you avoid overcharging.

It’s also important to stay calm whenever we encounter mistakes in our receipts, as human error is inevitable.

 

[Gsr]

I always check my receipts before I leave the store, it is ridiculous the amount of items that are overcharged, sometimes because items have not been marked down in the store checkout system, sometimes operator error. I always tell the operator what sort of fruit I have if it is not packaged, especially the younger operators who often have no idea there are so many varieties in fruit, I find they pick any variety and charge for that.

 

[Ricci]

That's one of the reasons I like to shop online, I can see my running total and stop when I get to my spend limit. There are no overcharges and the items you click on go straight to your basket so there's never a mix up in size or variety.

 

[MindyMac]

You have to be really careful. I purchased some Woolworth's 3L milk yesterday that was marked down to $1.44 instead of the $4.50 price tag. When it went through the checkout it scanned full price. The use-by date is 19.4.2023 and I plan to do a big shop. The milk smells ok and in fact may even last until 20-21.4.2023.

I have been taken by Woollies, Coles and even Aldi simply by not checking my receipts. Sometimes I have checked and see items scanned more times that what I have.

In regards to Aldi, I wish that their receipt showed the number of items and the total charged and not print that item each time. If buying 48 tins of cat food the receipt prints that item 28 times and not once x 48 = $total.