TESCO ham advertising issue

starface

Hi all,

I'm writing this on behalf of my mam. Today she came across ham in a tesco store in the repuplic of Ireland. On each packed of ham there was a red label staying 2 for 3 pound. Unfortunately my mother was tired and mistook the lable for saying 2 for 3 euro (as she wasn't expecting things to be in pound). We are a big family so my mother bought quite a few packes of this ham for the coming week or two weeks. Once she got home she realised she had been charged 4.50 euros per pack. Out of principle she rang tesco pointing out the error but the manager was a complete dog and just said it's legal you should have looked at the shelf edge.

There is no euro price on the ham anywhere and she wouldn't have bought it if she had of known it was two for 4.50 as she is cautious of her spending and could have bought our ham in lidl or aldi. She also didn't look fora lableon the shelf edge because the red label on the ham was so big she didn't feel the need to double check.

I'm just wondering is it legal to have items priced as pound here (in Carlow). Also 3 pound is equal to 3.40 euro not 4.50 euro. Is she entitled to her money back (they said they don't offer refunds on meat). Three of us are in college(two boys) and a few more at home so she did buy a good few packs thinking she was getting a great deal.

Any advice would be great!

jor el

If the SEL had the right price, then they are pretty much covered. However, I don't believe that there should be a £ Sterling price displayed on the packaging when it's being sold here. Not sure if there's anything you can do, or anyone can do for that matter.

As for refund, if the SEL is there and correct, then no refund would be due.

Might be worth asking the NCA about the Sterling pricing though.

starface

Thanks Jor el, thats what i thought too. You would imagine tesco would just give the refund to keep her as a happy customer. This is really the sort of thing that will really annoy her.

wmpdd3

Yeah, I would have given the refund of the difference.Usually stuff like that is sold at 2 for the euro version of the sterling price.

Sometimes you get caught out, all other packs could be normal then 1 pack had a sterling price on it and you either have to re-sticker the price or dump the stickered stock.

I don't think the NCS would have much to say as many items like clothes in ZARA have loads of currencies displayed, as long as there is a clear euro price displayed also.

try leaving a comment here, use the digits from your receipt.

https://www.tescocomments.com/

foggy_lad

Under consumer legislation, retailers operating in Ireland must display the final price of goods for sale in euro, including VAT and any other taxes or charges. There is nothing to stop retailers from also displaying other currencies.
In today's global economy, many of the products offered for sale in Ireland originate outside the country. This is especially true for clothing as many of the retailers operating in Ireland are branches of English-owned chains, hence the £ sterling price display. In most cases clothing comes into Ireland pre-labelled.

http://www.consumerconnect.ie/eng/Hot_Topics/FAQs/Price-displaY/

I would think that if a sterling price appears on a products packaging then it should also have the euro price on the same packaging or it would be Seen as misleading commercial practice.

ScouseMouse

There is no obligation to sell at the price printed on the packaging.

As long as there is a displayed price on the shelf, then legally, there is nothing you can do.

I have some chocolate at the moment with a big £1 sign on it. I bought it in a cash and carry in Chester. When I put it on the shelf, I price gunned €1.20 onto it. This allows me something for the sterling and the ferry.

Completely legal, but I did mark it as such. According to the OP, Tesco didnt. Legally though, I believe they are covered.

foggy_lad

I don't think the shelf edge price sticker covers it when the sterling price is actually marked on the items. The sterling is the price that is seen and as such the advertised price which is incorrect.

sandin

Legally they are covered, but I've seen this and the display box has in very large font 2 for £3. When you're shopping, you might not be overly alert and its quite easy to think its 2 for €3 due to the sixe of the marking. - The product itself isn't price marked, so it would be dreadfully easy to simply discard the box and display the product in a normal way.

Its also produced in the UK and there are plenty of Iriah options around

Better still - there are plenty of new 400g packs selling for €5, both at the tesco deli counter and also from the likes of Galtee / brady's in the normal aisle - this works out at €1.25 / 100g even cheaper than if the above item 2 for €3 - and these are Irish produced.

ScouseMouse

foggy_lad wrote: »

I don't think the shelf edge price sticker covers it when the sterling price is actually marked on the items. The sterling is the price that is seen and as such the advertised price which is incorrect.

No its not. It can have a price three feet high plastered across the front of it and it is not legally enforceable.

Any price you put over it will take priority. As long as the customer can clearly see the price THE SHOP is offering it at, then any flashed price is legally void.

It is down to the customer to vote with their feet if unhappy.

noodler

foggy_lad wrote: »

I don't think the shelf edge price sticker covers it when the sterling price is actually marked on the items. The sterling is the price that is seen and as such the advertised price which is incorrect.

Without being legally sure I'd say it must.

So many of the products in our stores are packaged in the UK and you opften see pound signs on them but the price on the shelf is generally what I look for.

If it says 4.50e on the shelf beside the ham then I don't think they have really done anything wrong.

Cabaal

foggy_lad wrote: »

I don't think the shelf edge price sticker covers it when the sterling price is actually marked on the items. The sterling is the price that is seen and as such the advertised price which is incorrect.

err sterling is not legal tender in Ireland, the correct price was on the shelf and displayed at the till. If the customer paid the price they were happy with what was displayed at the till.

The customer didn't have to pay the price but Tesco haven't done anything wrong here

Retailer

Unfortunately what tesco have done is perfectly legal. It is however bad practice and can be very misleading to some people.

I sell some items that are price marked with a sterling sticker but will either sell them at that price or cover it with a new price sticker so as not to mislead.

A gesture of goodwill towards the OPs mother wouldn't have cost them much

ScouseMouse

Retailer wrote: »

Unfortunately what tesco have done is perfectly legal. It is however bad practice and can be very misleading to some people.

I sell some items that are price marked with a sterling sticker but will either sell them at that price or cover it with a new price sticker so as not to mislead.

A gesture of goodwill towards the OPs mother wouldn't have cost them much

That pretty much sums it up. Its the customers choice. If its printed one pound on the wrapper, but you put a sign on it saying one euro fifty cent, then thats the offer to the customer. Its down to the customer to accept it or decline it.

Shops are traders, I will offer you this packet for so much, you cannot demand it for more or less, (you can TRY and barter) but as long as you are offered a price, either verbally or displayed., it doesnt matter what the manufacturer has printed on it.

There is legislation about having a price displayed, but Tesco did have it on the shelf.

thesandeman

Yep totally legal.
Just check Iceland in Dublin (if its still there). Almost everything is flashed in Sterling but the shelf labels are in Euros. Usually 33-50% difference.

Cabaal

thesandeman wrote: »

Yep totally legal.
Just check Iceland in Dublin (if its still there).

Iceland are mostly certainly still in Dublin, infact they now have other stores
http://iceland.ie/

BengaLover

Maybe legal, but totally confusing for the customer.
I would advise OP to go higher than the tesco store manager and make a call to...HEAD OFFICE:p:p

wmpdd3

Tesco Customer Services
Telephone 1850 744 844, Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm, Saturday 9am - 6pm and we are closed on Sunday or email: customer.services@tesco.ie

You can contact them above:

rubadub

People get all upset over dual pricing in supermarkets & clothes shops in recent years, what they fail to acknowledge or realise is they have been living with this for decades -magazines & books have had dual/multiple pricing for as long as I can remember (or single currency pricing as per the OP).

Since this has been going on for decades I would presume it is allowed. Also bear in mind if there was no sterling price on the pack it would probably cost even more in euros -i.e. economies of scale on multi currency packaging saves companies a huge amount, not only in packaging but logistics etc. For that reason I hope it is never made illegal.

Some companies choose to overlabel the other currencies, I do not like this as the cost of that staff member and label is no doubt built into the price they are charging me.

compsys

thesandeman wrote: »

Yep totally legal.
Just check Iceland in Dublin (if its still there). Almost everything is flashed in Sterling but the shelf labels are in Euros. Usually 33-50% difference.

In fairness to Iceland that's not the case. I've been in there many times and had a look at the sterling and euro prices and the average mark-up is certainly NOT 33-50%. Yes, the odd product is 20-30% more expensive but there was no product that was 50% dearer. Some of the products I saw (only a few mind you) were marked £2 and €3. However, that's not a 50% price difference. £2 = €2.30 (.87 exchange rate). Selling for €3 instead of €2.30 = 30% increase. Still large but nowhere near 50%. Most product were 5 - 15% more expensive once exchange rates were accounted for.

I know everyone in Ireland loves to harp on about rip off Ireland and go on about how everything in Ireland is just so so so so much more expensive than everywhere else but that's simply not always the case any more.

edit: I'm talking about the new Iceland that opened up in the Ilac centre. Perhaps things were different a few years ago when Iceland was previously here.

dudara

@compsys Please leave the Stg/Eur comparison alone. That belongs in the Rip off Ireland forum, if anywhere.

Stick to the topic at hand

dudara

thesandeman

I wasnt complaining about the prices Compsys. Ive found Iceland to be good value.
I was showing the OP that its legal to have Sterling prices on goods as long as the Euro price is also shown.