A Trader Joe’s shopper grabbed five tomatoes at checkout. But her receipt charged her for 75 of them

A Trader Joe’s customer’s recent shopping trip’s clip is serving as a reminder for other shoppers to check their receipts closely. The customer, a TikTok user who goes by @intheclouds_, posted a video explaining how she spotted an error on her receipt.

In the video, the shopper said she meant to buy five tomatoes from her local Trader Joe’s. Instead, she was allegedly charged for 75 tomatoes. As described in the video, the Roma tomatoes were priced at 29 cents each, which brought the total for that single item to $21.75.

In the video, which gathered more than 180,000 views, the shopper expressed her surprise at the charge. “Not in this economy. No, ma’am,” she said. She added, “This is your reminder to always check your receipt because why did they ring me up for 75 tomatoes, and I only got five?”

Cashiers and produce codes may explain how a mix-up like this can occur

Many people in the comments section suggested that the cashier likely did not charge the shopper for 75 tomatoes on purpose. Several commenters who said they work as cashiers described how such errors can happen. “As a cashier this happens! always an accident! & we’d happily refund,” one person wrote.

Another shared a similar story, saying, “they rang us up for 55 water gallons when we just got 5 gallons lol.” A third commenter added, “Me accidentally charging someone $100 for avocados my first day somehow 😳.”

Brobible points out that in most U.S. grocery stores, produce items have what are known as PLU codes. Cashiers reportedly enter the product’s code and then select how many of that item the customer is buying when checking out. In this particular case, the report stated that the cashier would have entered five as the quantity for the tomatoes.

However, the outlet suggested that the cashier may have accidentally pressed a seven before the five, which could have led to the overcharge. This kind of small slip appears to be one possible explanation for how the quantity jumped from five to 75. Other shoppers have reported more serious problems with the chain’s products, including a case in which an Oregon woman became sick after drinking Trader Joe’s orange juice.

The report stated that customers can usually bring their receipt back to the location where they bought their groceries in order to get a refund. Commenters who said they work at Trader Joe’s and other grocery chains indicated that if they had accidentally overcharged the customer, they would have refunded her.

The report also addressed what a customer can do if a grocery store refuses to provide a refund. A shopper can file a complaint with the store or attempt a chargeback. According to Legal Clarity, customers can report overcharging and billing issues to their credit card company, and they typically have 60 days to do so.

It is generally a good idea to ask for receipts when trying to save money. Keeping receipts makes it easier to review purchases and confirm that grocery stores are not accidentally overcharging for common items. Quality concerns have surfaced as well, including a report where metal shards were found in bread and pizza sold by the chain.