The $59.99 Kmart Sticker & Michigan’s Scanner Law: What Every Collector Should Know

The $59.99 Kmart Sticker & Michigan’s Scanner Law: What Every Collector Should Know

So, you are browsing your local video game store and you grab a GTA V copy for PS3 at 12 bucks with their specific price sticker, scanned and you are chatting, might not even notice just swipe your card.. a 30 dollar charge? Oh my! Well, let's dive in to Michigan sticker law, but not law school level. We won't keep it too dry So you were charged more than the displayed price for an item, well Michigan law gives you specific rights:

• You have 30 days after the transaction to notify the seller. (keep receipts, I lose them but you shouldn't)

• The seller must then refund the difference and pay a bonus equal to 10× the difference—minimum $1, maximum $5—within 2 days of your notification.
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Speaking of PS3 games, browse our PS3 game collection here. Shipped straight from Michigan at the sticker price... plus tax.

Bonus (“Bounty”) Explained

If multiple identical items were overcharged in the same transaction:

• You receive the price difference for each item.

• But the $1–$5 bonus is given only once per transaction—even if you bought multiples. You aren't going to pay rent with the price difference plus "bonus." Although a woman once told me years and years ago that she did it with the same item on repeat so different transactions, numerous receipts... to prove a point? Make extra income? I was unsure and walked away. 
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Other Insights from the Law

• The price must only be clearly displayed in the store, not necessarily on the item.

• The seller can be legally required to honor the posted price, including showing a signed offer or photo if necessary. Some stores say, "All VHS 25 cents (unless individually marked)" Then you notice that they're all individually marked, throw a girl a bone and let me get this copy of Titanic for a quarter, come on!
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• If the store doesn't refund both the difference and the bonus, you can sue for either actual damages or $250 (whichever is greater), plus up to $300 in attorney fees.
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TL;DR—Here’s How It Works in Practice

1. Disc Traders’ price mismatch: Let’s say I see a video game marked $5 on the shelf but end up being charged $8.

2. Notify them within 30 days—you must have your receipt.

3. They must refund the $3 difference and pay an additional $3 bonus (10× the difference, but capped at $5).

4. If they refuse, you can take them to small claims court and potentially get compensation plus legal fees. Could you imagine? But, I do understand it, those overcharged dollars add up! I wonder how much the average person in America is overcharged at retail stores annually. How many do you think notice? 

So your gut was right: Michigan law protects you, and your sense that “they can’t just charge what they want” is actually backed up by real legislation. Anytime you notice a price mismatch, feel free to assert your rights. You’re not being difficult—you’re just being aware.

Michigan’s scanner law gives you leverage only if the price is clearly displayed in the store at the time of sale (shelf tag, sticker on the item, or electronic display). That’s why as a kid at Kmart you could ask for the refund plus the $5 bonus, and they’d honor it. But yeah, you do have to specifically ask — most stores won’t volunteer it.

Where People Get It Twisted

• Old stickers don’t count. A 10-year-old GameStop or Kmart clearance sticker means nothing today. If a store is reselling that item now, they’re not bound to honor that ancient tag. You all have to stop going to stores trying to get a $50 item for 3 bucks because they didn't take off an old yard sale sticker off the case. I get it, "Take the sticker off!" But, let's be real, many game stores and just retail in general - they are understaffed and underpaid. So, I don't feel good yelling at some poor guy who accidentally rang me up an extra 2 bucks because he is backed up with trade ins, the air conditioning broke, he forgot his lunch, his girlfriend dumped him yesterday, and he didn't look as closely as he should have. Prices get changed in the system and stores can't keep up replacing all the stickers. I know many of you understand the pain of working retail.

• Yard sales / flea markets → Michigan law doesn’t apply there either. It only covers retailers using price scanners. 

• Collector’s items (like that Wata-graded Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! with the $59.99 Kmart sticker): I think that was the price, it was on Pawn Stars. Well, the sticker adds nostalgia, but not legal weight. Any Michigan buyer trying to force a seller to honor that sticker would get laughed out of court. As a Michigan born and raised citizen, I could absolutely see someone try to pull the Scanner Law on that sealed graded game. I am not even joking!
  

Why That Old Kmart Sticker Does Matter to Collectors

• It’s part of the history → A mint, sealed game with an original retail price sticker makes it feel authentic and “of its time.”

• It can even increase appeal — especially when the sticker is from a dead retailer (Kmart, Toys “R” Us, probably Best Buy soon).

• But it doesn’t mean you can buy it for $59.99 in 2025. It just means you’re holding a piece of retail history.

So yeah, when you were a kid, Kmart had to give you the refund + $5 — because the law is real and protects current buyers. But no, some broke angry Michigander can’t walk into a shop today and force someone to sell them a $20K sealed game for $59.99 just because of an old sticker... even though they will try.