Huge Discounts, do you believe them?

Earlier this week Tesco was fined hundreds of thousands of pounds for advertising price 'reductions' that weren't. Now the Office of Fair Trading has accused six High Street furniture and carpet retailers of misleading their customers with fake prices saying the stores had all advertised price cuts which were not genuine.

Do you actually take any notice of these 'special offer' deals and believe them or is your buying decision in a supermarket based on whether you think the product is at a price you consider to be par for the course or cheaper and with bigger items are factors like style, colour, quality and being within budget the key factors when making a decision.

The few times I have snapped up something when it has a reduced price is because I know it is being offered at a price much less than it is being offered elsewhere - and I would do that even without a special offer or x% off sticker on it. I have also passed on things I would like and I know are cheaper than elsewhere on the grounds that I currently cannot afford them and accept that when I can afford them I will have to pay more.