While rushing through last-minute holiday shopping, it’s easy to lose focus on the small things, like how much you’re actually being charged on your purchases. But if you don’t pay attention, you could end up paying more.

In October, Target agreed to pay nearly $1.75 million to settle civil charges brought by five California county district attorneys, who alleged that the retailer charged customers more than the lowest posted price on certain items. The retailer, which did not acknowledge wrongdoing, agreed “to implement additional audit and price accuracy procedures in its California stores for a four-year period to ensure compliance with pricing accuracy requirements,” Sonoma County District Attorney Stephan R. Passalacqua said in announcing the settlement.

A month earlier, New Jersey Attorney General Anne Milgram announced that she and the state’s Division of Consumer Affairs had filed suit against Drug Fair, Target and Wal-Mart for scanner overcharges (as well selling expired infant formula and non-prescription drugs.)

Recently, one of our staffers found two price errors at a Target store in Westchester County, N.Y. In one case, the store failed to remove a sales price sign after the sale had expired. In the other, it had raised the price on a box of cereal without having changed the shelf tag. When the staffer brought the tag to the customer service department complain, he was chided for removing it. “Customers need that,” the sales clerk remarked.

Separately, when the staffer attempted to buy a quart of paint at a local hardware store, the item scanned more than $11, even though the shelf tag said $9.49. As with Target, the clerk said the store had neglected to change the shelf tag after raising the price.

In two of the cases, the stores offered the items to the staffer at the lower prices.

So pay attention. And if you find pricing errors, complain to a store manager, and your state attorney general [http://www.naag.org/attorneys_general.php] or state or local consumer protection department [http://consumeraction.gov/state.shtml]

-– Anthony Giorgianni