[Tuscani01]

According to Canada's Competition Bureau scanner price accuracy voluntary code, it does indicate that items under $10 are free and anything above $10 is subject to a $10 discount.

Source: http://www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/eic/site/cb-bc.nsf/eng/03252.html

Excerpt:


That said, I bought something a couple of weeks ago from Home Depot and the scanned price was higher than the price indicated on the shelf label. The checkout attendant came with me to investigate and it was confirmed that the label was correct and that the incorrect price was scanned in. Not having looked into this policy before, I asked about it and was also informed that they only had a policy if the item was under $10. The item I purchased was about $30 so all they did was correct the price, no discount or other price reduction.

At this point, I don't really care about what I paid but, rather, what should be the course of action in the future should something like this occur again?

I think the confusion has to do with retailers not training staff on the code, and the public not being aware of the code. The signage provided to retailers doesn't help either, as it does not list the >$10 item = $10 discount off corrected price rule. See below for text from the signage:

"Scanning Code of Practice

If the scanned price of a non-price ticketed item is higher than the shelf price or any other displayed price, the customer is entitled to receive the first item free, up to a $10 maximum. If a Code of Practice problem cannot be resolved at the store level, please call 1-866-499-4599 to register your complaint."

Its also important to note that the description on the label must be identical to the product being purchased, so a pair of scissors with a price tag of $3 but labeled as a knife would not be covered under the scanning code of practice, even if every single item in that spot was a pair of scissors. Canadian Tire normally gives you the scissors for $3 regardless of what the description says anyway.

My experience at Best Buy involved $70 speaker stands being priced at $50, and the description was a different brand. They still honored the $50 price too, and for both speaker stands without me even having to ask... which went way above and beyond the scanning code of practice, but according to the rules, was still wrong since they should have taken off $10??? Seems quite confusing.

 

[Monarch Butterfly]

It's income tax time. Do you donate at the checkout?

Why nobody gets a tax benefit when you donate at the checkout​

Customers who donate at cash registers don’t get a tax receipt, but neither do retailers​

From https://www.cbc.ca/radio/costofliving/checkout-donations-nobody-gets-tax-benefit-1.6524462

It happens almost every time you pull out a wallet to pay for groceries, a coffee or a cheeseburger.

A friendly face on the other side of the till asks if you would like to donate an extra loonie or toonie to charity. If you nod your head in agreement, the cashier adds an additional few dollars onto your transaction.

The practice is called point-of-sale fundraising, as the charitable donations are funnelled through retailers at the final point customers make their purchases.

All that extra change brings in big money for charities, but it does not give individual Canadians the same tax benefits as donating directly to charity without a cash register in between.

Nobody gets a tax receipt. Really!​

In 2021, grocery chains Metro and Calgary Co-op collectively brought in more than $5.5 million for food banks, emergency shelters, cancer research and hospitals in Quebec, Ontario and Alberta.

So who gets to write all those donations off their income? Customers or retailers?

The correct answer, according to accounting and charity experts, is neither. When it comes to checkout philanthropy, in Canada, no one gets a tax benefit.

"The individual [customer] would need to donate directly to the charity to obtain a receipt," wrote Toronto-based chartered accountant Brian J. Quinlan in an email to CBC Radio's The Cost of Living.

"It would not be ethical for the grocery store to request a charitable receipt as it is not donating its own money."

Higher donations and lower costs​

Even so, some non-profit organizations say there are big benefits when retailers ask you for change at the checkout.

"It is the cheapest way for charities to raise money," said Gena Rotstein, principal at Karma & Cents, a Calgary-based consultancy that advises on philanthropy.

According to Rotstein, there are major savings for non-profit organizations.

"They're not issuing the tax receipts. They're not tracking down donors. They're not writing thank you notes, all the stuff that costs money to raise money," she said.

Fundraising costs are high and retailers can help lower them​

A lot of time, planning and labour go into more traditional fundraising efforts, such as canvassing door-to-door, or putting on a glitzy gala.

According to Charity Intelligence Canada, which tracks and analyzes what charities donated money, fundraising costs make up about 20 per cent of Canadian charities' annual operating budgets.

When grocery stores or fast-food chains collect donations at the checkout for a charity, a lot of those fundraising costs can be eliminated.

Point-of-sale fundraising isn't tracked nationally in Canada, but is monitored by organizations in the United States.

In the roughly 30 years since this type of fundraising began, more than $4.9-billion US has been raised through checkout tills and similar efforts.

There are other incentives for stores​

In the absence of tax receipts, many Canadian retailers who ask for donations at the checkout have self-stated mandates to be good corporate citizens or community players.

However, Rotstein points out another reason stores team up with charities is for good marketing.

Retailers can leverage a charity's positive brand to promote their own outlet, which delivers good brand equity at a lower cost to the store than more traditional marketing. As well, customers are already at the checkout ready to spend money, so fundraising expenses are also lower.

It's a win-win for the charity and for the company because they've now got their brand recognition even further into the community," said Rotstein, noting retailers are strategic about which charities they partner with.

"You're going to be giving to kids, puppies and health care," she said.

The more innocuous, the better, according to the philanthropy expert.

"Costco gives to the children's hospital. Why do they give to the children's hospital? Well, aside from the fact that it's a good thing to do, it's aligned to the type of customer they have, which are typically families buying in bulk," said Rotstein.

Do your research before giving, says charity expert​

On the other hand, charitable industry watcher Kate Bahen is not a fan of point-of-sale giving.

"I call it the hold at the checkout. Like, hands up. Do you want to give $2?"

The managing director of Charity Intelligence Canada is adamant that customers avoid donating at the till, unless they are fully informed about the charity.

Canadians should give to charities that matter to them, according to Bahen, and research how those charities spend their money before they donate.

"It might just be $2 here and $2 there. But at the end of the day, those $2 add up to millions of dollars," she said.

"It's absolutely fine when you have no information about a charity to say, 'No thank you' and not feel guilty."

 

[Bayer]

I donate routinely at the LCBO. If I do it twice a week, then it means I lose about $60 in tax credits every year - nothing to be overly concerned about, especially since earning tax credits is not the point of donating to charity.

 

[lenaitch]

I almost never donate at checkout. The very odd time, if I am in a generous mood, I may donate a couple to Jumpstart at CTC, and there is the odd 'round-up' campaign. Otherwise, I donate regularly to a fixed set of charities.