Fastenal to Pay Out Thousands of Dollars for Charging Hidden Fees to Retail Customers in Monterey County

Monterey, California- Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine M. Pacioni announced on Wednesday, December 30 that her Consumer Protection Unit, along with the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office and the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office, has entered into a final stipulated judgment with Minnesota-based Fastenal Company that resolves allegations that it charged walk-in retail customers undisclosed “shipping and handling” fees, and failed to conspicuously display the price of each good along with any surcharges to the consumer at the time that the item is rung up in the electronic checkout system. Fastenal Company sells industrial and construction supplies at its 138 retail facilities in California. Many of these stores are open to the public for walk-in retail sales, including at its branch stores in Seaside, Salinas, and Soledad. Since at least 2015, prosecutors alleged that Fastenal Company sold certain in-stock goods to walk-in customers at these stores without disclosing that it was adding “shipping and handling” surcharges for these products, in violation of California’s Unfair Competition Law and False Advertising Law. Fastenal Company’s further failure to provide customer-facing screens that display the prices of goods and surcharges as they are scanned, as required by section 13300 of the Business and Professions Code, further prevented consumers from identifying this hidden surcharge prior to payment. At the time of these violations, Fastenal Company was under a permanent injunction not to intentionally engage in these same acts within California. On September 13, 2011, the California Superior Court for the County of San Diego entered a stipulated judgment against Fastenal Company in a similar public enforcement action by the People of the State of California, which enjoined Fastenal Company from these violations and from otherwise engaging in false advertising or unfair competition. Pursuant to the stipulated judgment in this current case, Fastenal Company must pay $625,000.00 in investigative costs and civil penalties, plus $25,000.00 in cy pres restitution to the California Consumer Protection Prosecution Trust Fund. Fastenal Company is also ordered to establish and maintain an audit program and an employee training program to ensure future compliance. The stipulated judgment includes a new permanent injunction that enjoins Fastenal Company from intentionally engaging in similar violations in the future. The prosecution of this case was led by Deputy District Attorney Amy Anderson and the case was investigated by District Attorney Investigators Alicia Cox and Captain John Ferreria.