Remember when stores would promise a price adjustment if the price of something dropped shortly after you bought it?
Those offers are getting fewer and fewer these days.
Shawna Harris just discovered that.
The Colerain Township woman decided to make it a great Christmas for her family, purchasing a classic stand-up arcade game from Walmart.com, for $499.
"I purchased it about a week before Thanksgiving," she said.
But a few days after she received it and set it up, Harris found the exact game marked down on Walmart's website for just $399, a $100 price drop.
"I ordered it on a Thursday, had it delivered Saturday, and on Monday the price was $100 less," she said.
She called and asked if she could get a price adjustment, but says she was shot down like an asteroid in a 1980s video game.
"They told me they don't do price adjustments anymore," Harris said.
Fewer retailers will adjust your purchase price
This holiday season, many shoppers are discovering that some major retailers have tightened up their price match and adjustment policies.
Among them is Walmart, which no longer offers adjustments on most items.
We reached out to Walmart, which referred us to their website, stating that as of June 2023, it will "not match competitors' prices or items purchased from Walmart.com that later decrease in price."
A recent report by The Krazy Coupon Lady says Walmart will now only match its own website, if you find the item in the store is more expensive. And there is no adjustment after the sale.
Other stores vary, we discovered.
Target's website states that it still offers 14-day price adjustments on most items.
Amazon, like Walmart, will not adjust a price if it drops later.
Walmart is now offering Harris a $25 credit, or says she can return the game and repurchase it at the new price, but she says it's too big and bulky for her to do that.
"I literally didn't even have it for a week," she said. "That didn't matter."
But even if a store has tightened its price match and adjustment policies, It doesn't hurt to ask, as they may still offer you some sort of credit or discount for the future.
That way you don't waste your money.
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