Consumer Rights/ Has shop broken any laws??

iffy_2007

Hiya,

I recently went into a well known furniture shop, I seen a table I liked and took a picture of it just to show family to see what they thought, this was on the 4th of july, the table and chairs were priced at 899e with a 30% reduction included in that price. Went into the same store on Friday there and the same table and chairs were priced at 45% off at 949e....took another picture as evidence!!! so there is a higher percentage off the table and chairs but the price is higher???:eek:

I know there is a law which states a shop needs to advertise the price for a certain length of time before they can claim a sale price of x percentage off...not fully sure though, can anyone shed any light, thanks!

starbelgrade

If a reduction is displayed on an item, the previous price must have been valid for 28 days over the previous three months.

starbelgrade

If you have a complaint regarding the pricing of goods, you should begin by taking this up with the retailer. There may be a simple explanation, such as the item was mislabelled.

If you are still unhappy with your complaint on pricing matters you should then contact the National Consumer Agency, the Competition Authority or the Industry Regulators.

iffy_2007

with 30% off the table was priced at 899
with 45% off the table was priced at 949

with 45% off the table is coming in dearer than what it was with 30% off... sorry if the original post is confusing...

iffy_2007

the problem I have is the retailer is using misleading information into tricking people into buying the goods..."oh look, this table is 45% off, great bargin, we better buy it now then". I wanted to make sure that I have my info correct before I say anything to the retailer, so this might not necessarily against the law if they had the higher price listed for 28 days over a period of 3 months?? thanks for ur help

91011

I simply wouldn't buy anything for that store as they are clearly misleading you on the pricing - will they mislead you on other things too?

Pleanty of honest furniture stores around.

starbelgrade

iffy_2007 wrote: »

with 30% off the table was priced at 899
with 45% off the table was priced at 949

with 45% off the table is coming in dearer than what it was with 30% off... sorry if the original post is confusing...

At the 30% reduced price, the previous price was (or should have been) €1284.29.

At the 45% reduced price, the previous price was (or should have been) €2108.88.

Not only are the prices displayed not within the required 28 day period, but they are clearly incorrect or miscalculated. I've seen this done on more than a few occasions in furniture shops & I've seen it working too - many customers are far too easily sucked in to the "promise" of a large discount, even though it may not really represent good value for money.

If I were you, I would take it up with the retailer - I would put it in writing & send it to the manager. If you don't get a satisfactory response, you should take it further.

By then, you may have lost any interest in buying the furniture, but we as customers should not only vote with our feet, but should also take the responsibility to not allow retailers who clearly mislead customers, to get away with it, scot-free.

viclemronny

The second one would be 1725.45, not 2108.88.

(949.99/55)100=1725.45

sunnysoutheast

iffy_2007 wrote: »

the problem I have is the retailer is using misleading information into tricking people into buying the goods..."oh look, this table is 45% off, great bargin, we better buy it now then". I wanted to make sure that I have my info correct before I say anything to the retailer, so this might not necessarily against the law if they had the higher price listed for 28 days over a period of 3 months?? thanks for ur help

.....I don't think the higher price has to be in that particular shop though. If it's a chain which has multiple outlets then they may be acting within the letter of the law, if not the spirit.

I suggest going in, asking for a manager, pointing this out quietly, and I'd expect you'd get the €50 off for a cash purchase if you still want the furniture.

Sorry if this isn't relevant, but I seem to remember this is how products can be offered at massive apparent discounts in stores because high prices are publically displayed in one store of a chain in a "posh" area.

SSE

starbelgrade

viclemronny wrote: »

The second one would be 1725.45, not 2108.88.

(949.99/55)100=1725.45

So it is - I divided by 45 instead of 55.

iffy_2007

I dont know why I didnt mention the shop... name & shame time.. Harvey Normans... from reading previous posts they have being getting away with far too much in Ireland. I'm going back into the store tommorrow with my complaint, ask whats the best price they can do me for the table and then send my letter into the Consumer Rights, might aswell see what I can get out of them as they seem to be doing to the people of Ireland!

sdanseo

Consumer Information Act, 1978 is the act in question, probably amended since several times - but I know for certain the law is that a price must be displayed for 28 consecutive days before it can be referred to as "reduced" or "on sale" etc.

91011

sdonn wrote: »

Consumer Information Act, 1978 is the act in question, probably amended since several times - but I know for certain the law is that a price must be displayed for 28 consecutive days before it can be referred to as "reduced" or "on sale" etc.

Correct, but it can be displayed in just one of their stores for the period. Thats where the legislation is flawed.


If there is a compalint, they'll just say it was on sale in Drogheda for that price from 1st to 28th June.

p.s. Diamond Living are doing a clearance event this weekend of in stock furniture. - Might be worth a look.