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#Post#: 48511--------------------------------------------------
Misleading trading practices (omissions)
DIR By: andy_foster
Date: December 5, 2024, 2:35 pm
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Sanity check/curiosity/rant...
This evening I ventured forth to my local supermarket. Lets call
it Tesco, for the sake of accuracy (albeit stopping short of
pedantry). The weather was atrocious, which has no bearing on
the facts of the matter, or legality or otherwise of the
practice(s) in question, but served to extract any festive cheer
that your correspondent may otherwise have had. As did the sight
of the Scouts encouraged by their Fagin committing offences
contrary to the Vagrancy Act of 1824 by wandering around the
store to beg by accosting shoppers.
In the promotions section at the end of the wines and spirits
aisles, they had a promotion on 70cl bottles of Baileys reduced
to £10. This caused me concern, as I had intended to buy a 1
litre bottle for £10 - a promotion that I recalled was due to
run well into December. It would appear that that promotion, had
been curtailed in favour of a far less generous one. After all,
who in their right mind would buy a 70cl bottle of Baileys for
£10 if they could buy a litre bottle in the same store for the
same amount?
As far as I am aware, the other major supermarkets will still
have the promotion running on the litre bottles, so assuming
that I don't need a smaller bottle there and then for the same
price, I can stock up when I next visit some other major
supermarket...
However, just check to satisfy my own curiosity, I thought that
I would check the far end of the wines and spirits aisle, to see
what they were now selling the little bottles for. £10. As per
the promotion which I had correctly recalled was due to still be
running, as is still running. So I bought one. And started
thinking.
TL;DR - Tesco are quietly running a seasonal promotion selling 1
litre bottles of Baileys for £10 (largely in order to compete
with the other major supermarkets), but have stopped actively
promoting this in order to actively promote and sell 70cl
bottles for the same price. No rational consumer would buy the
70cl bottle if he knew that the 1 litre bottle was available in
the same store for the same price.
When trading with consumers, any misleading practices, including
significant omissions, which would be likely to affect the
transactional decisions of the average consumer constitute
criminal offences, subject to the sole defence of due diligence.
Am I missing something, or are Trading Standards simply an
offence under the Trades Descriptions Act?
#Post#: 48602--------------------------------------------------
Re: Misleading trading practices (omissions)
DIR By: JoCo
Date: December 6, 2024, 6:25 am
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--- Quote ---
> Tesco are quietly running a seasonal promotion selling 1 litre
bottles of Baileys for £10 but have stopped actively promoting
this.
--- End Quote ---
I don't know about stores, but The litre bottle offer is being
actively promoted on website.
Looking at the Tesco website there are two different items.
a) Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur Bottle 17% Vol 1L
£22.00
b) Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur Bottle 17% Vol 70Cl
£16.50
Item a) 1L is on offer for £10 with a Tesco Clubcard until
19/11/2024 - 09/12/2024
Item b) 70cl is on offer for £10 with a Tesco Clubcard until
03/12/2024 - 31/12/2024
Item a) and item b) are different and distinct items.
They have a different barcode / skucode.
Tesco are able to set whatever price they like for each of these
items and offer whatever promotion they like for each*.
And so they should.
* Except Scotland , of course.
If they want to be particularly generous with one offer, that's
their privilege.
If they want to downplay one offer, in instore display, that
also is their privilege.
Given that the Litre offer started in 19/11/2024, it is likely
that stock is running down, as they move to stock & promote the
newer 70cl XMAS offer.
I can't see any Trading Standards issues. I could only imagine
they might be if the two lines somehow had the same volume, e.g.
one had a different packaging but was otherwise identical,
except price, which could confuse the customer.
Let the buyer beware. Or as in OP case, let the buyer be aware,
and grab a bargain.
There is no difference, in my mind, to this practice, and having
an offer on, say, 48 T bags, but finding that it's still
cheaper, pro rata, to buy 240 t-bags.
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