LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced today that Albertsons, Vons, and affiliates will pay $3.9 million to settle a civil law enforcement complaint that alleged the California corporations engaged in false advertising and unfair competition.

"False advertising preys on consumers, who are already facing rising costs, and unfairly disadvantages companies that play by the rules," District Attorney Gascón said. "This kind of corporate conduct is especially egregious when it comes to essential groceries, as Californians rely on accurate advertised prices to budget food for their families. Our office's Consumer Protection Division works to protect consumers and hold corporations accountable for breaking the law."

The complaint alleged that Albertsons and Vons unlawfully charged customers prices higher than their lowest advertised price. Furthermore, Albertsons had issues with inaccurate weights on the labels of their products. Some items sold by weight such as produce, meats, baked goods and other items had less product in the package than was displayed on the package label. For those items, a grocer may only charge for the product's actual weight; the packaging is not included in the overall weight.

LADA's Consumer Protection Division, in partnership with the consumer protection units of the district attorneys' offices of Marin, Alameda, Sonoma, Riverside, San Diego, and Ventura counties, investigated and prosecuted this matter. The case was filed in Marin County Superior Court.

Under the judgment, signed by Marin County Superior Court Judge Sheila Lichtblau on September 26, Albertsons and Vons are required to pay $3,213,000 in civil penalties and $749,500 in costs and restitution to cover investigation costs and support future enforcement of consumer protection laws.

The judgment also prohibits the companies from engaging in false or misleading advertising.

The judgement requires the grocers to implement a Price Accuracy Program, including a Price Accuracy Guarantee that allows a consumer to be compensated up to $5 if they are overcharged. The program is an incentive to encourage consumers to report false advertising to the store as soon as it is discovered.

The company did not admit wrongdoing. It was cooperative in the investigation and has taken steps to correct the violations.

Albertsons Companies, Safeway Inc., and The Vons Companies operate 589 stores in California.