Coles raised prices on 20 'locked' items and had to refund thousands of customers

In December 2023, Coles apologised for prematurely raising the price of 20 items it had previously 'locked' as part of a promotional period, offering refunds to thousands of affected customers. The products included cornflakes, pregnancy tests, dishwashing tablets, chopped tomatoes and barbecue briquettes, marketed with locked prices to help households budget.

Coles became aware of the discrepancy after consumer advocacy group Choice submitted a complaint to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. A Coles spokeswoman said the ticket price was incorrectly increased before the end of the promotional period: 'We know cost of living is the biggest focus for so many of our customers... We sincerely apologise for this mistake, and we are working quickly to make it right.'

The refunds split by payment trail: customers who used their Flybuys card or bought through Coles Online were automatically refunded the full item price, while others had to show a receipt at the service desk. Choice deputy director Andrew Kelly called the failure to keep pricing promises 'unacceptable', saying that without Choice's complaint 'it's possible thousands of people would still be out of pocket without even realising'. The episode hit while Coles and Woolworths — both past $1 billion in profit, and over 60% of the grocery market — faced a Senate inquiry into prices.

The price lock was the whole marketing pitch, so breaking it in exactly the way it promised not to was self-defeating.

Loyalty-card and online data made the overcharges provable, and Choice proved them.

It came at the worst possible moment: record profits, a cost-of-living crisis, and a Senate inquiry into supermarket pricing already scheduled.

A price promise is an operational system, not a slogan: if the till can override the lock before the promo ends, the promise is only as good as your worst pricing error — and someone will check.

Coles put the products back on promotion and processed refunds, with automatic refunds for Flybuys and online customers. No fine was disclosed in the source; the episode fed the political pressure culminating in the Senate prices inquiry early the next year.