UPDATE: Was ‘buy one, get one free’ not so free? State suing Safeway

11:56 AM: With three Safeway stores in the West Seattle vicinity , a newly filed state consumer-protection lawsuit might be of interest. State Attorney General Nick Brown (a West Seattleite) announced the lawsuit this morning:

The corporate owner of Safeway, Albertsons, and Haggen grocery stores has overcharged Washington consumers in more than 3 million transactions over a five-year period through deceptive “buy one get one free” deals, Attorney General Nick Brown argues in a new consumer protection lawsuit filed today.

Boise-based Albertsons Companies, one of the largest grocery store chains in the country, owns and operates all Safeway, Albertsons, and Haggen grocery stores in Washington, totaling 225 retail grocery stores across the state.

The grocery stores entice consumers through “buy one get one free” (BOGO) promotions on staples such as bread, cereal, fresh produce, and olive oil. According to the complaint filed in King County Superior Court, the stores artificially hike prices of products slated for the supposed specials in the weeks or months leading up to a “buy one get one free” promotion, overcharging customers who purchase in the interim. Then they lower the prices within about 30 days after the deal is over. The net result is that consumers think they’re getting a second item free, but in practice, they’re just paying an inflated price for the first item.

For example, a Gig Harbor Albertsons hiked the price of a bottle of olive oil to $10.99 for the BOGO promotion from $6.99 a week earlier, an increase of 57%. After the “buy one get one free” deal ended, the store dropped the price back down to $6.99. …

From October 2019 to May 2024, the defendants overcharged Washington consumers on more than 3 million transactions, the lawsuit says. The stores brought in as much as $19.7 million by attracting consumers into their stores with these deceptive deals.

This is not the first time the defendants have been accused of unfair and deceptive BOGO promotions in stores in the Pacific Northwest. Albertsons paid $107 million to settle a 2016 class action lawsuit related to misleading “buy one get one free” deals in Oregon stores. The companies also settled a proposed class action case filed in 2023 in federal court related to deceptive BOGO promotions in Washington stores. …

See the lawsuit document (which cites other examples of the alleged practice) here. We have a request out for comment from Safeway/Albertsons.

12:26 PM: Here’s their comment, obtained via email:

We are aware that the Washington Attorney General has filed a lawsuit related to certain buy‑one‑get‑one promotions. We engaged in good‑faith discussions with the Attorney General’s Office and strongly disagree with its claims, which are based on flawed analysis and data errors that we identified and raised.

Albertsons Companies is committed to complying with the law and to offering customers clear value through our promotions. As this is pending litigation, we will address the matter through the legal process and cannot comment further.

Slow Down April 27, 2026 (12:01 pm)

When I worked at a grocery store 20+ years ago I recall my manager saying that BOGO pricing is flatly illegal in WA.

I’d also like to put a pin in this one for people who claim that increasingly draconian policing measures will somehow lower our grocery bills. These stores are always looking to swindle us, and while losses due to petty theft are real, they are the scapegoat and not the primary cause of our increasing grocery bills.

Lauren April 27, 2026 (12:29 pm)

100% this.

bolo April 27, 2026 (12:07 pm)

Corporate grocery stores are in an extremely competitive marketplace. Makes one wonder if any of Safeway’s competitors are using similar deceptive tactics.

GRRRR! April 27, 2026 (12:12 pm)

This is the same thing most stores do for Black Friday sales. Jack up the price, put it on “sale”, and then reduce the price right after the holiday. It’s the Capitalist way.

Sarchka April 27, 2026 (3:13 pm)

This, right here, is why I never ever shop on Black Friday. It’s a huge swindle.

NoMad Sci Guy April 27, 2026 (12:33 pm)

Am I the only one nervous about ‘demand pricing’ now that these stores installed the electronic price tags underneath the products? I heard some markets elsewhere in the country were test driving this.

Frog April 27, 2026 (1:11 pm)

You would figure that demand pricing works both ways. If a store computer detects the possibility of running out of an item before the next delivery, it might increase the price. The downside is you would pay more at that moment, but the upside is you are less likely to see an empty shelf if you really need the item. (This is exactly what airlines have done for decades. The price of tickets varies by date and fluctuates constantly depending on how well a given flight is selling.) If a store computer sees an item is selling more slowly than expected, especially one with limited shelf life, it would lower the price to move the stock, giving you a bargain and reducing the risk of food waste. It’s not clear that dynamic pricing would increase average prices over the long run. Usually risk carries a premium in any business, so if dynamic pricing allowed a reduction of inventory risk, in a competitive non-food-desert market, it might actually reduce average prices.
- blumdrew April 27, 2026 (2:19 pm)
  
  Surge prices as a way to handle shortages is very different than for surge pricing food. Grocery stores very, very infrequently run out of stock on items. Surge pricing basic needs is morally indefensible; it’s pure profiteering.There are already ways to reduce food waste: it’s called a markdown. Stores already do this. This is not being implemented to lower prices, and it should be clear that the intention is to gouge, because that’s what surge pricing is. It’s gouging.
Kb April 27, 2026 (2:43 pm)

I keep some items in my Amazon shopping cart just to watch how wildly the prices fluctuate, which keeps me from buying things on Amazon.

WSRob April 27, 2026 (1:11 pm)

regardless of what the price per item is. If the second item is $0 when the transaction occurred, it’s free. Nice to see our AG has nothing else to worry about. We must be doing fantastic as a State!

Delridge420 April 27, 2026 (3:43 pm)

Consumer protection is literally part of the AG’s job. Nice to see Republicans in this town are willing to be easy marks for corporations if it means they can screech about Democrats.

PSPS April 27, 2026 (1:12 pm)

This is what happens when an orgy of consolidation is allowed. Safeway, Fred Meyer, Haggen, QFC and many other formerly separate companies have all been gobbled up by their former competitors.

Bill#1 April 27, 2026 (2:36 pm)

The first (at least modern) screw-over was the “store card” scam — where almost immediately – items that were $2 one week were $3-4 the next then $5 — then back to $2-3. This scam was debated and the pitfalls pointed out – but the legislature still passed it giving its ‘blessing’. Nothing like several “Big Brothers” monitoring and recording and analyzing you every purchase and timing of such! The BOGO BS can be bad enough — but how about the things with: ‘normal price’ = $4.49 (say), — this week’s special price $3.49!!! — then from 30 feet away you can see the bright yellow bottom portion of the tag — you get close – and in BRIGHT RED blatant contrast and LARGE font is says $2.49 MUST BUY 5 !!! The Albertson’s + Safeway merger was really bad — but – We really dodged a bullet last year when A+S+Kroger merger was blocked – can you imagine the world of hurt we’d be in if that scam had been approved?The store websites are so fouled up that a close perusal seems to reveal borderline fraudulent practices. Take a real good look at them – spend some time REALLY in depth — you may not be impressed! – But you have to look at them to help avoid obvious rip-offs.Getting to where you need to take a phone, computer, lawyer, accountant and a couple of armed guards – just to go shopping for groceries!Caveat Emptor!!Caveat emptor is a Latin phrase meaning “Let the buyer beware,”

Azimuth April 27, 2026 (1:19 pm)

Can the state also require grocery stores to use a consistent “cost per” on the price tag? It’s harder to compare items “value” when one set of chips show dollars per ounce vs another brand or size is per pound.

SimpleMath April 28, 2026 (9:17 am)

16oz in a lb. Simple algebra that your pocket computer can help calculate.

Ceallaigh April 27, 2026 (1:23 pm)

MetMarket does same with steaks.

CorkyConsumer April 27, 2026 (1:52 pm)

This lawsuit is essentially saying that a retailer can’t change their pricing at-will, which I’m not a fan of. It’s not as if the consumer is unaware of the pricing they’re going to be charged in the BOGO offer at the moment of sale. I’m all for legislation for up-front transparency in pricing for hotels, concert tickets, mobile service, etc. but I’m not a fan of legislation that tries to set or limit pricing, whether that be directly or indirectly through fines. As long as the purchase price is clear at the time of sale, that’s all I care about. I don’t care what the price was a week ago or going to be next week. If you know your product pricing and are a smart shopper, these games that retailers play shouldn’t matter – you already know what a good price per unit is. I just don’t think this rises to the level of being “deceptive and unfair.”

Delridge420 April 27, 2026 (3:53 pm)

The lawsuit is saying they can’t deceptively manipulate prices and gouge people. Unless you work for Safeway, why would you be in favor of that?
Trenchant P Mundane April 27, 2026 (5:19 pm)

And, am I missing something to conclude that the BOGO is still a good deal? If the bottle of oil is $10 and the store raises it to $15 but gives me another bottle don’t I save $2.50 per bottle?
- Delridge420 April 28, 2026 (12:10 am)
  
  You are missing something since the people that buy after the price hike but before the BOGO goes into effect, since stores don’t usually pre-announce their BOGO deals, are getting screwed.
- ITotallyAgreeWithYou April 28, 2026 (12:22 am)
  
  That would be “buy one get one half off”, not free. If they said “buy one at $90, get 5 free” do you believe you are getting 5 free or do you understand that is $15/product? When a store offers “free with purchase” I promise you the free item is of little value and/or the purchased products price is set to a point where they aren’t actually giving anything away for free. These are gimmicks shown long ago to effectively attract buyers who get drawn into words like ‘free’, ‘sale’, ‘bogo’ etc. It’s false advertising.
K April 28, 2026 (6:05 am)

CorkyConsumer, your arguments are predicated on an assumption of market competition and consumer choice. With all the mega mergers, one retailer choosing this deceptive practice has a wide market impact and is hard to avoid, especially for low-income consumers.

When you live paycheck to paycheck, you don’t have the luxury of watching prices and waiting. Independent grocers may require a longer bus ride and inconsistently accept WIC/SNAP benefits, or are more expensive so you burn through benefits faster. Stores also have the right to not have BOGO sales if they don’t want to give items away for free. They can choose profit without deception, and they should.

ITotallyAgreeWithYou April 27, 2026 (1:52 pm)

I’ve noticed that manipulative pricing practice for years and thought it was a sleazy business practice but didn’t know it was illegal. Agree with another commenter that other businesses do the same such as black Friday sales. That Albertsons Co continue to do it despite payout settlements shows they gain more from it than it pains them.

Shopper April 27, 2026 (1:56 pm)

So if Washington wins the lawsuit, who gets the money, or where does it go?

WSB April 27, 2026 (2:54 pm)

The relief they’re asking for is toward the end of the court document that’s linked above.

Alki resident April 27, 2026 (4:15 pm)

As a person who is a good shopper, I was always aware of the prices and never participated in BOGO “ sales”. It was obvious they inflated prices before those sales. I’m surprised more didn’t realize this.

Julia April 27, 2026 (4:24 pm)

Some years ago, at a footwear chain store, I saw the staff changing each price sign to a higher number. When asked, they said that’s what they always did the day before a big BOGO sale.

Bill#1 April 28, 2026 (8:04 am)

I was pricing a laundry detergent at a major retail grocery the other day. Three different sizes of the same product – largest – regular price — mid size $2.00 off, smallest adv as if on sale — the per ounce prices ranged from $0.133 to $0.139 (13.3 to 13.9 cents) per ounce — i.e no difference — but the “sale” prices can entice you to buy something you do not normally use and/or make you think you’ve saved a couple bucks that you can spend elsewhere in the store on something you may not need! Again — caveat emptor – and be sure to check receipt. I have experienced items that supposedly have sale prices that haven’t quite made it into the system — pointing out to clerk always gets the correct price or credit. My only real complaint is the amount of time spent pre-shopping on computer and the things that you have to drag along with you while shopping!

bradley April 28, 2026 (12:58 pm)

Of any issues I have with supermarkets, this one doesn’t even hit my list. Do we really need our hands held grocery shopping? There are flyers, the internet, multiple stores…you can find your deals. And how this is illegal seems bogus, you paid for what the price tag says, regardless of what the price was last week, yesterday, tomorrow, The State AG needs to find better things to do with his army of lawyers, or cut staff. I seriously doubt any of us will see a dime back. It’s a pennies on the dollar suit. If pricing is such an issue, there seems to be bigger fish to fry; Ticketmaster, airlines, fuel stations (why isn’t there a flat rate at every station?), shop rates, etc.

Delridge420 April 28, 2026 (3:48 pm)

Another person chiming in to say that they love being fleeced by corporations and don’t understand what the AG’s job is.
- Bradley April 28, 2026 (11:27 pm)
  
  Actually I’m clearly thinking I don’t need my hand held to shop prices at the supermarket. I look at the price tag. I agree to pay the price. And that’s it. End if story. No one forced me. I’m good with it. Happy happy.
  - Delridge420 April 29, 2026 (2:01 pm)
    
    I’m happy we have an AG who is willing to enforce the law so that busy people who don’t have the time to play these games aren’t getting taken advantage of.

CaptAdmiral April 28, 2026 (1:00 pm)

I’d like to see the (at least what I consider to be deceptive, which, granted, does not mean illegal) practice of advertising a product as say $1.99 but you only get that price if you buy some ungodly quantity of said product (like 4 bags of chips). Safeway looooooves to do this and it’s so irritating.

Bradley April 29, 2026 (2:54 pm)

Yes! And those tiny digital tags now where it’s nearly impossible to see without closeup eyeballs, the x for x to get sale pricing. That’s what I’d like the AG to chase, minimum size signage.
CarDriver April 29, 2026 (4:03 pm)

But, if it’s actually a good deal whatever you buy will last. Not like you have to eat (or drink) it up in a couple days.

Sorry, comment time is over.