It's $10, not $9.99, OK?

Are shoppers really as dumb as retailers seem to believe? I'm talking about their insistence on not rounding store prices to the next dollar. I'm tired of stores charging me $9.99 for an item as if I'll believe that I'm really only paying $9. Who are they trying to kid? Well, I for one think that it's time for us shoppers to put a stop to this charade.

This pointless pricing scheme doesn't help consumers. It's strictly a psychological ploy, according to Gary Foreman, publisher of The Dollar Stretcher.

"The reason they do it is to get people to think of the lower number," says Foreman, who has no plans to change the name of his site to The Ninety-nine Cent Stretcher. "People have a tendency to make purchase decisions based on a preset amount. We'd like to believe that we're spending $9.99, not $10 plus tax."

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Sales tax: Death by aggravation
If sellers really wanted to help me, then they'd make sure that the price on the item I'm buying is rounded off to the next dollar when the sales tax is added. For example, the sales tax in Florida is six cents per dollar. That would mean I could pay for a $0.94-cent soda with a dollar bill without having to worry about breaking another single.

Most people I know would prefer not to have lots of loose change jangling in their pockets. But no, change-less pricing would make too much sense. Currently, I have to pay $1.06 for a stupid drink, and I rarely have exact change on me to pay the tax. In fact, this is the kind of stuff that drives people to shoplift.

Let's face it, the only people who carry change purses are older than 60. And I find it annoying to have to stand behind them in line as they slowly ... count ... every ... penny ... aaaaaaagghhh!

A dollar makes all the difference
The sad part is that there are many people who go along with this silliness. I can almost understand a sales clerk skipping mention of the extra cent when asked for a price check on a store item. But why do other people say they paid $19.99 for something rather than saying they spent $20? It's certainly not out of convenience because it's actually easier to say $20.

This problem doesn't even stop with the lower priced items. Go to any car dealership and you'll find vehicles being sold using the same pricing technique only with an extra dollar added instead of an extra cent. I suppose dealers think the extra dollar will be the deciding factor in making the deal.

Car salesman: I've got his beauty here that you can have for $15,000.

Customer: I like it, but that price sounds too expensive. Do you have something a little less pricey?

Car salesman: You're in luck. I have that exact car on sale over here for $14,999.

Customer: Sounds great! I'll take that one.

Unfortunately, consumers often buy items based on emotion rather than logic. Retailers see the odd pricing as an inexpensive way to capitalize on buyers' weaknesses, says Foreman.

"Even when we're buying a car we think of what the price in the ad says. We don't think about the price including the tag, title and sales tax," he explains. "The moral for the consumer is to be aware of it and not to fall for it. In terms of getting retailers to stop doing this, it'll be a long time before we'll see them do that."

Despite Foreman's pessimism, I think there are still things we can do to stop this pricing madness. Next time you're shopping for a car, shock the sales person by saying, "Here, please take the extra dollar. I insist. But I implore you -- put $15,000 on the sales receipt!" Likewise, tell your store clerk that you'll pay the extra penny if the sales person will just be brave enough to say the words, "That item costs $10."

So won't you join me in just saying "no" to the 99-cents nonsense? Together we can work to do away with those ridiculous "Take a penny, leave a penny" signs littering America's checkout counters.

-- Updated: March 23, 2004