COUNTYWIDE : Mervyn’s Settles Consumer Suit

Mervyn’s Department Stores of Hayward has settled a consumer protection lawsuit filed by Orange County prosecutors, a deputy district attorney said Thursday.

The suit, filed in Orange County Superior Court, alleged that all 98 Mervyn’s stores in the state had advertised greater discounts for large-quantity purchases during a “Buy More, Save More” sale from April 17 to 23 but had programmed their computerized checkout systems to apply lower discounts no matter how many items were purchased.

“The only way for a customer to receive the higher discount for multiple-item purchases was for the salesclerk to override the computer,” Deputy Dist. Atty. Gerald G. Johnston said. Authorities said that clerks were not volunteering to override the computer.

Without admitting liability, Mervyn’s agreed to pay penalties and investigative costs of about $210,000, Johnston said. Mervyn’s also changed its computer programming so that during future “Buy More, Save More” sales, the highest discount will be applied automatically instead of the lowest, he said.