Get ripped off 27/7 at CVS!
One day I trekked down to my regular pharmacy and got a rude awakening.
Much to my chagrin, the corporate giant that runs CVS gobbled up the retail outlet I was loyal to, without so much as a:
"Wham-bam! Thank you man!"
Like Wal-Mart before it, a CVS invasion into the mainstream marketplace has been making waves across the country .
For the most part, the reaction of consumers has been negative.
Outside one outlet in Westwood, for example, a posse of activists scrambled to coral customers as they exited the thriving enterprise with the specific aim of rustling up signatures for a petition seeking to trigger action against CVS (and their evil empire) for allegedly selling confidential medical information gleened from pharmacy records in violation of consumer rights.
Although a lawsuit was also filed against CVS in recent months for allegedly selling expired products on the shelves which posed a potential threat to customers' overall health and well-being (which was quickly settled out-of-court in spite of the fact CVS execs insistered there was no wrong-doing on their part) CVS management has continued to engage in dishonest conduct which may be ripe for litigation, too.
Shopppers have complained to consumer advocates - that after they plucked up sale items from the well-stocked shelves to take advantage of the savings - the original price was charged at the cash register instead of the discounted one advertised.
This past weekend, for instance, I spied two sales I was inclined to act upon.
One, offered regular-size chocolate bars (normally 89 cents each) at the yummy price of two for-a-buck.
Also, ten bottles of vitamin water (which normally retail at $1.69 each) were being offered for a sawbuck.
If that paper-money jargon has you baffled, just quiz an old-timer at the market for the answer.
Uh-huh!
Ten bucks.
With bargains in hand, I stepped up to the rough 'n tumble line (CVS has the WORST check out system in retail chain hell. The bozo who designed the sucker must have had sh** for brains) snaking down an aisle to await my turn.
The first two items (candy bar snacks) didn't pass muster!
"This one is $1.59," the clerk smirked at me.
I motioned to the counter below where the price (the one I correctly quoted) screamed out in bold black type from a brilliant yellow tag.
"Well, it's a mistake," he responded rudely.
At this juncture, I heard a couple of snickers (no pun intended) from a couple of customers behind me, who were starting to shift from one leg to another impatiently.
I thought I'd give him the benefit of the doubt, set them aside, and motioned for him to ring up the remaining item.
When he announced the total, I stared back in disbelief.
Something was amiss.
After scannning the receipt, I spied the error right off-the-bat.
Instead of charging me $1.00 for the Vitmain water, he inputted the sum of $1.99.
When I pointed out the overcharge, he got annoyed with me.
Apparently, a celebrated athlete was tied into a special promotion for the same thirst-quencher.
But, if I recalled correctly, that special was not advertised in the glass refrigerator at the back of the store.
So, I trotted down the aisle and verified that the sale price I was referring to was correct - at which point - I called out for him to check the sale price for himself.
In response, one of his co-workers strode up and took a glance at the offending tag, then retorted:
"We have two sales. You were charged for the other one."
"Well, I want the one that was advertised here," I firmly underscored without batting-an-eye.
Frustrated by the confrontation - and obviously not intelligent or experienced enough to fathom how to resolve the dilemma - he suddenly contradicted himself.
"That sale ended today," he replied smugly.
"So there! Gotcha," he appeared to be saying.
"Sir," (I used the term loosely - after all - he was a seriously overweight twenty-something kid with a spiteful unprofessional attitude) "the law requires that you sell me the item for the avertised price".
Oh, did that get his goat!
To shake things up a bit, I thought I'd throw a little scare in his direction.
"CVS just settled a lawsuit for violating consumer laws. Do you want to be sued again?"
His jaw dropped.
Meanwhile, the line at the counter was bloating-up by the minute.
Boy, were the natives getting pi**ed.
Suddenly, the little dough-boy yelled out to the cashier in an exasperated tone.
"Give it to him for a buck."
The cashier rang up the charges, I paid, and that was that.
When I headed out the door, I was absolutely floored when I overheard a nasty remark the disgruntled CVS worker uttered up to his co-worke behind my back.
"Because of that a**hole, I have to change all the price tags!"
Well, that was it in a nutshell, wasn't it?
Or, was it?
Why didn't CVS Management instruct staff to strike sale tags as soon as the goods were no longer available at bargain prices?
CVS's failure to inform employees about consumer laws was highly suspicious, too.
After all, pricing errors on advertised sales should be honored without question.
In the case of CVS, it appears that the company is relying on employee igornance (and their failure to disclose) to get them out of a "fix" when they are caught red-handed fudging on sales items to rack up profit.
I was also miffed at the failure of CVS staff to recognize the repercussions of their reprehensible unprofessional conduct, which interrupted the natural flow of things.
For example,when a customer snaps up a sale item and there is an obvious error in price, the clerk is forced to void the charge, then re-calculate the totals, and-so-forth and-so-on (with obvious delays).
In that event - in addition to the purchaser - the customers in line behind are also forced to deal with the frustrations involved, as well.
On the morning in question - boy! - did I face their ire.
The snafu wasn't my fault, but judging from the nasty glances in my direction, you'd think so.
Heck, I just wanted CVS to honor the sale price without having to twist an arm or two.
Fat chance!
Suddenly, something dawned on me today, as I was penning this post.
What does CVS stand for?
It's a secret code, a get-out-of-jail free card, used frequently at the Evil Empire.
Can't Vouch (for) Sale.
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