Any legal eagles out there help me out with a question RE advertised prices

loz_the_guru · 09-01-2009, 10:36 PM

Just wondering where I stand on this one. Unnamed shop A have a current advert that has a picture of a product, along with a price attached to it. Theres no text describing the product, but the image is clear.

If they have it in stock, can I demand a sale at the advertised price? Anything I can say that will help me out (thinking along the lines of 'Under subclause A of pargraph 32 of section 32 of the Trades Description act).

Thanks in advance!

**Steven** · 09-01-2009, 10:38 PM

No

It is an invitation to treat, not an invitation to sell. You want to be looking at the common law here

Though nothing stopping you from asking

loz_the_guru · 09-01-2009, 10:48 PM

thought it seemed to good to be true. Have just PM'd you LFC, hope you dont mind!

Synax_Injector · 09-01-2009, 11:47 PM

Nope you can't,

example,

At halfords we were sent a letter telling us that the local paper printed an advert that we had a sat-nav £20 cheaper then what it actually was, it was their mistake and not ours and were told not to honour it.

So if you saw it in the paper, brung it in store, we would refuse it at that price.

guitarcarfanati · 10-01-2009, 1:35 AM

The general idea is that it is an invitation to treat. You, the customer, offer to buy at the advertised price when you take it to the till. It is then up to the retailer whether to accept your offer and sell at that price.

Man I miss second year contract law...

pixelated · 10-01-2009, 2:05 PM

Good old Fisher v Bell.

eric pisch · 10-01-2009, 2:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by guitarcarfanati

The general idea is that it is an invitation to treat. You, the customer, offer to buy at the advertised price when you take it to the till. It is then up to the retailer whether to accept your offer and sell at that price.

Man I miss second year contract law...

i dont i never could get my head around tort

**Steven** · 10-01-2009, 2:10 PM

Its contact law

bosque · 10-01-2009, 2:29 PM

...and it stops people switching tags on goods and demanding you must legally sell the item at the cheaper tag price, not that anyone would ever dream of doing that.

Astraeus · 10-01-2009, 6:18 PM

Rely on their goodwill and reluctance to incur any bad press.

Play.com incorrectly listed their PS3s at £219 a fair few months ago and both here and HotUKDeals went mad with people snapping them up for £70 cheaper than they had been that same day. An hour later and they price went back up but, certainly in my case, Play offered the misquoted price.

ROBIN50N · 10-01-2009, 6:23 PM

some times shops honor it as a good will gesture unless its by a big amount. but they dont have to as has been said.

mattclarkie · 10-01-2009, 6:32 PM

But then you get into Bait and Switch.

If you buy the item, pay for it, and then complain the shop will often sell it to you at the advertised price, providing you can proof it was mis-priced, as you have entered a contract. Sometimes they will just refund the price, but often they sell it to you cheaper.

But until you have purchased it the shop will withdraw it from sale at that price.

tricky0001979 · 10-01-2009, 9:12 PM

It is a common misconception that goods with a wrong price tag must be sold at that price. Prices displayed in a shop are not legally binding offers, but you may want to report the matter to trading standards as the store may be breaching other pricing laws. The store has the right to withdraw the current offer and take the stock off the shelves wait till closing then put the stock out again with the right offer to sale.