Full Breakdown
Pak’nSave Supermarkets Fined Over Repeated Pricing Errors
By Drooid · · How we work
In this breakdown
01
Court Fines for Pricing Breaches
In May, the Auckland District Court heard the cases of two Pak’nSave stores—Mill Street in Hamilton and Silverdale in Auckland—after they pleaded guilty to multiple Fair Trading Act breaches. The Mill Street store admitted ten charges and was fined $346,500, while the Silverdale store pleaded guilty to eight charges and received a $234,000 fine, bringing the total penalties to $580,500. Each charge carries a maximum possible penalty of $600,000. The judge’s written findings remain pending, but the fines were announced this morning.
02
Background of the Violations
The breaches involved advertised “special” prices that did not match the checkout price, including a product labeled “extra low” that was only discounted for a small fraction of the year. At Silverdale, staff manually updated prices without a systematic approach until an electronic labeling system was introduced in October 2024. At Mill Street, an electronic system was already in place, but the store lacked a process for recording price complaints before June 2024, leading to additional infractions. A prior 2020 case against Pak’nSave Mangere resulted in a $78,000 fine for similar discrepancies.
03
Official Statements & Responses
She noted the commission’s satisfaction with the penalties but highlighted the need for a review of the Fair Trading Act, which could raise maximum fines to $5 million per breach.
Prosecutor Nick Flanagan argued that the penalties should be “significantly” higher than previous fines to deter future misconduct, pointing out that the excess revenue from the breaches “materially understates” the true gain.
Defence lawyer Iain Thain contended that both stores had cooperated, deserved additional discounts, and had already improved their pricing systems, citing occasional instances where customers paid less than the advertised price.
04
Criticism & Opposition
Duffy linked the pricing errors to a lack of meaningful competition in the grocery sector, which he said enables excessive profits and low investment in customer service.
05
Verbatim Quotes
- “These are highly profitable stores who should be investing in pricing systems that ensure these errors that mislead consumers do not happen.” — Anne Callinan, commission deputy chair