Woman shops for $108 at Walmart but 'self-checkout' adds $85 of its own — but she isn't the only one

Grocery shopping can be hectic and packed within a tight schedule, and we might not always notice the errors and discrepancies right in front of our eyes. A shopper who goes by @brasnotallowed on TikTok revealed that she saved herself from being charged an extra $85 at Walmart. Sharing in a TikTok post, the woman explained how her total read $108 before she proceeded to self-checkout. However, when she inserted her card to pay, the amount reflected was $193. The shocking miscalculation has shoppers worried about being robbed in broad daylight via overcharging, and sources suggest that these errors have been repeated across 1,600 outlets.

The woman explained that she wasn’t an avid Walmart shopper but decided to visit the store for a quick trip. When she finished gathering her items and headed to the self-checkout, she noticed the total was $108. “I went and put my card in the little reader, and I noticed that the card reader said $193,” she mentioned. She double checked by taking out her card and putting it in again. The strangest part was that the machine read $108, but the card reader was still at $193. The woman then called an employee who checked the machine but didn’t have a solution. She then had to manually check the items for the shopper and bill her the rightful $108. 

“I thought that was really odd, and I don’t know if I would have ended up paying it if it actually had gone through,” she said in a concerned tone. She noted that it could have been a glitch, but cautioned fellow shoppers to be more mindful while checking out. Turns out, it wasn’t a glitch — at least just for her. Walmart has reportedly faced several allegations of overcharging employees. A report from Bloomberg News revealed that since March 2024, over 1,600 Walmart stores across the U.S. had similar issues. The self-checkout machines were either calculating totals higher or lower than the correct amount.

Walmart spokesperson Mischa Dunton noted at the time that 80% of the customers who were overcharged had been reimbursed. They mentioned that the situation occurred due to a technical error and would be looked into. However, the woman’s recent video from December 2025, just last month, is a caveat to shoppers to be alert. Christopher Peterson, a former attorney with the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, now a University of Utah law professor, explained that this is illegal and violates consumer protection law. “Because Walmart is such a large retailer, even a small mistake like this can cause millions and millions of dollars of illegal overcharges,” he explained. 

According to The Sun, another shopper, Tonya (@tonyap88), shared a similar experience from a fellow customer. Having made a total of $90, he was shocked to see the total on the self-checkout go to $150. This was posted in February 2025. Then, and even now, many shoppers are facing the same problem. @eddyhubgina wrote, “Walmart is notorious for overcharging. It’s very profitable to scam customers.” @justsogina added, “Happened to me on the Walmart app. They just added $28 for no reason.”  @lanes461 remarked, “All stores are taking advantage of people not paying attention.”

You can follow @brasnotallowed and @tonyap88 on TikTok for more content on lifestyle. 

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