I think this and "higher than usual call volumes" are really just about plausible deniability. Anyone who's worked retail will have a story about someone who in

I think this and "higher than usual call volumes" are really just about plausible deniability. Anyone who's worked retail will have a story about someone who insists that the thing they're buying was cheaper last week even though it wasn't. Telling people up front that things have changed probably at least sometimes defuses that conversation one way or another before it even happens.