Santa Barbara District Attorney Joyce Dudley announced Monday that her office settled a consumer-protection action against Best Buy in which Best Buy is alleged to have misrepresented the price of items sold and failed to accurately disclose material aspects of its return policy, among other violations.

Dudley’s office settled the case along with the District Attorneys of Alameda, Riverside, and San Diego counties. The final judgment requires Best Buy to “institute changes in its business practices to ensure that the problems identified in the complaint do not recur.” These changes include a renewed pricing-accuracy program and enhanced disclosures of return policies. 

The Santa Barbara County Weights and Measures Department discovered pricing-accuracy violations, along with several other weights and measures departments across the state. Without admitting liability, Best Buy agreed to pay $449,065 in civil penalties, $109,505 in costs, and $75,000 in restitution. Of these funds, the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office will receive $112,266 in civil penalties and $20,000 in costs. The Santa Barbara County Weights and Measures Department will receive $3,840 in costs.


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