Walmart, Costco & Target among supermarkets facing $50 fines under new ‘abandoned’ shopping cart bill

PROPOSED regulations regarding shopping carts will have popular supermarkets including Walmart, Costco, and Target facing hefty fines – and shoppers may be forced to foot the bill.

As lawmakers crack down on abandoned shopping carts to address concerns of neighborhood safety, these retailers will be stuck shelling out $50 per violation.

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Retailers may be hit with hefty fees for abandoned shopping carts, and these high costs could be handed down to shoppers[/caption]

A whopping two million shopping carts are stolen each year, with these looted or misused carts frequently abandoned in public areas.

Shoppers, especially those in urban areas or without a vehicle, use these carts to transport their groceries home and then abandon them out of convenience.

Additionally, shopping carts are frequently taken by homeless individuals to help carry their stuff, often found dumped in alleys and vacant lots.

This not only creates an expensive, unsightly problem for communities and can incur costs for cities, but also runs US retailers around $175 million in replacement and repair costs each year, per The Food Marketing Institute.

Retail giants like Walmart, Costco, and Target may soon lose even more money due to abandoned carts under a new law.

IT’S NOT FINE

The city council in Brawley, California – roughly 100 miles from San Diego – unanimously approved the first reading of an ordinance aimed at addressing the issue of abandoned shopping carts at a meeting on Tuesday, per a local outlet.

Brawley police chief Jimmy Duran introduced the local law, describing the stranded shopping carts as a public nuisance.

“They become potential health hazards and really interfere with some of the pedestrian and vehicular traffic within our city. I think we’ve all seen them from time to time out there,” he said.

Duran specified that businesses would be required to secure their shopping carts and retrieve any abandoned around town.

He also told the council that the ordinance would give retailers 30 days to submit compliance plans, and once approved, subsequent violations would be punished with a $50 fine per day for each cart.

Duran said that larger chains like Walmart create most of the problem, with city leaders discussing if the fines should be scaled differently for retail giants versus smaller businesses like Grocery Outlet.

CURBING THE CART CHAOS

Brawley is not the only city working to address the issue, tied to homelessness and neighborhood safety.

In Eureka, California – roughly a five-hour drive from Sacramento – the city council passed a new law last month enforcing an $80 fee on retailers per abandoned cart.

City workers can now return these shopping carts directly to the retailers and charge them for the delivery rather than sending them to the scrap yard.

Over in Stockton, California – roughly 45 miles from Sacramento – officials have amended a longstanding ordinance, pushing stores to better preventing carts from leaving their property by threatening citations and fees.

Other areas in The Golden State are either imposing or actively considering fines on retailers for abandoned shopping carts, including Duarte, Glendale, Fortuna, San Jose, and more.

Outside of California, cities in Texas, New Mexico, Georgia, and other states are likewise holding retailers accountable for abandoned shopping carts.

They are requiring timely retrieval, implementing containment measures, and even penalizing non-compliance with monetary fees.

PRICE HIKES?

As the number of shopping carts being removed from store premises and discarded in public areas grows across the country, retailers are losing millions of dollars each year replacing or repairing stolen and damaged carts.

Shopping carts are not cheap, with new ones running businesses anywhere from $100 to more than $500 depending on the model. 

The expenses retailers face due to stolen carts fall under the larger issue of “retail shrink,” which also covers shoplifting and organized retail crime.

To cover these losses, which account for hundreds of billions of dollars annually for US retailers, many businesses are left with no other choice but to raise prices.

Nearly 65% of the retailers surveyed in a US Chamber of Commerce report said they have increased prices due to theft. 

“The challenge for retailers is deterring theft without upsetting shoppers,” retail expert Dominick Miserandino, CEO of Retail Tech Media Nexus, told The U.S. Sun.

He explained that many chains are taking advantage of GPS tracking and smart carts to monitor and retrieve stolen shopping carts in real time.

Companies are also increasingly installing electronic or magnetic systems that automatically lock a cart’s wheels when it crosses the parking lot perimeter.

Many chains are using GPS tracking and smart carts to monitor and retrieve abandoned carts in real time, reducing the need for fees that could frustrate customers.”

Dominick MiserandinoRetail Expert

Some retailers are even paying specialized companies to retrieve abandoned carts from surrounding neighborhoods, or taking advantage of coin-lock systems, such as Aldi, to avert stolen carts.

These efforts help to reduce the need for fees and price increases that could frustrate customers, according to Miserandino.

“It’s about protecting assets while keeping the shopping experience seamless,” he said.

Aside from retailers having to shell out extra cash for abandoned shopping carts, shoppers in nine states face fines up to $2,500 – but there are three ways to avoid the fees.

Plus, check out the US states with “wardrobing” laws that could cost you $5,000 in fines – and you may not even know you’re breaking the law.