Scanning Code Of Practice
If you’ve never heard about the scanning code of practice it’s time you hear about it.
The scanning code of practice is a voluntary code brought to you by the Retail Council of Canada, the Canadian Association of Chain Drug Stores, the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers and the Canadian Council of Grocery Distributors. It was started in 2002 and most of the bigger Canadian retailers and grocers are on board with it (Wal-Mart, Canadian Tire, A&P, Independant Grocers, etc.).
To tell if a retailer is part of the SCP you’ll notice a sticker by the main doors or at each cash register. Some retailers try to hide these stickers by posting internal memos over them (A&P…) because they don’t want people to know about it.
What does it do? Well for example, if you buy a loaf of bread that is on special for $1.89 and it scans in at $2.29 then you get that loaf of bread for free. Easy enough? The tricky part is the cashier won’t tell you that you get the item for free. Instead they will just change the price to $1.89 for you. You need to tell them that the scanning code of practice allows you to get that item for free (since it’s under $10). The other thing to remember is you only get the first loaf of bread for free, the others will be $1.89 ea. For more info click here.
More examples:
1 X Cereal priced at $3.99 but scans in at $4.99 = Free item
2 X Cereal priced at $3.99 but scans in at $4.99 = One free item and one item at $3.99
1 X Box of chicken breasts at $14.99 but scans in at $17.99 = $4.99 because the scanning code of practice says the first item is free up to a max of $10. Anything over $10 = lowest price – $10
You need to remember this next time you get something that scans in wrong. Even if it’s only a $0.10 difference you still get the item for free. If ever you run into a problem and the retailer doesn’t abide by the code you can call 1-866-499-4599 and they will take care of resolving the issue with that retailer for you. Remember to keep receipts and the name of the employee that refused to give you the item for free. I’ve only had to call them once because a cashier and their supervisor didn’t know anything about the policy and refused to give me the item for free. I ended up with a $20 gift certificate for that grocery store when everything was resolved. More info is available on the Competition Bureau of Canada website.
We as customers deserve accurate pricing. Most customers don’t notice that they’ve over paid for some of their items. Next time you’re at the cash register have a look at the screen as your items are scanned in. You’ll be surprised at the amount of items that scan in wrong (especially at grocery stores). You’ll also end up saving some money.
That’s why I like shopping at A&P, their prices are always wrong so I always get free stuff.
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