Dollar General, Yost reach agreement, averts temporary restraining order

DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — The court battle between Dollar General and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is not over just yet.

Yost announced on Wednesday that he has met an agreement with Dollar General. The agreement will avert a temporary restraining order, which was requested by Yost.

In the order reached in court, Yost says in a release that Dollar General will be required to implement changes to the company’s policies.

Some of the things the company must take action on are having employees charge the price of the products based on the price shown on the shelf. Stores may have to also override a price to meet the listed shelf price, which the store will then take action to correct the discrepancy.

Along with correcting the prices, employees of Dollar General will be educated about the policy and will have to have signs posted in the store letting consumers know about the policy.

District managers of the locations will be required to have 25 items in each store every 45 days for a price check. If more than five of the items display another price, the corporate office will have to be contacted.

The stores will have to contact Dollar General corporate if the county auditor says a fail rate of 2% or more has happened during a price verification report by the local auditor.

The two parties have been battling over alleged deceptive pricing in Dollar General stores for several months. The attorney general for Ohio filed a lawsuit at the beginning of November 2022. In January, Yost went to a Butler County Common Pleas court judge filing to request a temporary restraining order.

“This is just a step in the process,” Yost said. “Litigation is not over, but this is a step in the right direction.”

The order by the court will not have any admission of liability or admission in which the price discrepancy exists between the price shown on the shelf and the register price.

If you believe you have been subject to unfair business practices by any business, you are asked to contact the Ohio Attorney General’s Office at 1 (800) 282-0515 or the office’s website.