Rights and wrongs of shelf pricing.

In 2019 I was looking for an oval Le Creuset casserole on the manufacturer's webside and saw that you got a 30% discount if you bought more than one product. I put two HUGE casseroles in my basket to see what I could save and saw to my delight that instead of costing £540 they were coming up at £105 so I bought them both. (Today the full price would be around £650).
The next day I got an email saying that there had been a glitch but I pointed out that they'd taken my money so had actually already sold them to me. After a day or two and a bit of to-ing and fro-ing they agreed to send the goods.
I do love a bargain and really appreciate that they were honest enough to honour the sale.
They are large enough to hold a leg of lamb or a really big chicken and I also use them (with lids) to bake beautiful loaves.

No rights you have no rights even if it said free a shop doesn’t have to sell you anything at any price. annoying but that’s the fact. Most shops will act on good will because they know it makes good business.
On a completely didn’t notE if you need Gaviscon regularly please check with your doctor. My doctor dismissed my heard burn for years when I changed my doctor she sent me for Gastroscopy. I had a hole in my oesophagus. Heart burn can be harmless but it can also be a symptom of many other things. Also Gaviscon and antacids can stop the body from absorbing vitamin B so if you take long term get your levels check. Sorry to side line but I would hate for anyone to suffer like I did ( I manage the condition now).

I think Boots have an own brand equivalent. Wilko certainly do with an identical formulation.

Tesco have given me a refund a few times when they have changed the reduced price back to ‘ normal ‘, but shelf price not changed. They also then give the item free. Only, presumably, applies to groceries.

Did they say what regulation prevented sale over the counter?
The Boots in our much-depleted town centre looks as though it’s hanging by a thread. The main reason people go in is the pharmacy really, as we have numerous discounters selling make-up and toiletries. They should be encouraging, not deterring customers.

Your rights depend on which country you are in, and Wellbeck is no doubt right as to what applies in the UK.

However, in many countries you would be entitled to demand that the shop sold the product at the price marked on the shelf, or on the packet, as the shop owner is obliged to change the price on the shelf before it is legal to sell goods at a higher price.

Whatever the legal situation, shops use bar codes and shelf prices to avoid having to price items individually. I make the decision to buy that item at that price at the point I put it in my shopping basket. I don't expect to then have to barter to get it at that price when I get to the till.

One major issue is that items are not always being put in the correct place by the staff. I have noticed this in Boots and Sainsburys. The last thing I want when I reach the till is to dispute an expected price and then told to go to Service Desk in the case of Sainsburys or to walk back across the store with a shop assistant in Boots to where the item was found. Mistakes are easy to make but stores should be keeping a closer eye on how shelves are priced and stocked.

Worked in retail for 20 years….doesn’t matter what the price label says …it’s the price the till recognises that matters! That being said, any decent manager would have given you the cheaper price , as long as the label did say ‘Gaviscon’ on it! ( customers been known to swap labels!)
Price changes come down every day , and the labels printed off…staff then have to change labels. But the bigger the shop and the scarcity of the staff, mistakes happen!!
Gaviscon is my tipple …and the price is extortionate …try sainsburys own brand ! It’s half the price and just as effective.

I have never had a problem when clarifying the price at the till, they have always given it to me at the lower price. Even if I was mistaken they don't seem to mind when I don't buy it. In regards to the earlier comment from the antiques shop, I did wonder why on Bargain Hunt, the antique shops expect you to negotiate and sometimes quite substantially.
In regards to the comment about asking them to give you £10.00 off AFTER putting the items through the till, then exiting without paying. Not THAT is too tempting. [Smile]

The Range is the worst that I've come across. Most other stores will agree to sell for the price on the shelf edge- The Range said it is what comes up at the till. So be aware . Due to the unhelpful policy of The Range, I seldom shop there and only if I can't buy the product elsewhere.
Yesterday in Aldi, the shelf price was £1.99 - the till said £2.49. I went back to the till and the assitant said they are £2.49. I said the only reason I bought was because the price was £1.99. After checking with a colleague, the shop confirmed the shelf price was what I would be charged. I'm said to say this is not the first, second or even tenth time.

The shelf price is not a guaranteed price. When the shelf and actual price differ stores usually accept the lower price if pointed out. Had the same experience in M & S with toothpaste, sticker said one price for 125 grms when it should have been for 100 grm size. Cashier checked and acknowledged sticker confusing.

I think Boots are getting ridiculous.
If you want to buy Ibuprofen for instance, you get the third degree.
I went yesterday to buy antihistamine tablets which are also used for travel sickness and sleep problems.
I could clearly see them on the shelf, but when I asked for a packet I was told ‘the pharmacist has instructed me not to sell anymore’. When I asked why and were they being cleared of the shelves I was given short shrift,.
I was absolutely gobsmacked.
I thought about asking the pharmacist personally why but when I saw the queue thought better of it.

Buy it online, its cheaper and more readily available. I buy it for my husband and you can get a large bottle online for the price you would pay for the small one in a store especially Boots. Do a google search and you will get a list you can go through for the cheapest. Some do free postage too, another bonus.

Pinkjj27 please can I support your advice re heartburn & Gaviscon. My mother had heartburn for several years & was always told by her GP to carry on with the Gaviscon. In 2020 we discovered it was not simple indigestion but pancreatic cancer. She died 5 weeks after diagnosis.
Please press your GP for further investigation, particularly if you have also been told you are borderline diabetic as I have since discovered this too can be an early indication of pancreatic cancer.
It is a silent killer so please speak up.

I often do replenish (shelf stacking) at work and despite and my and others best efforts, customers mess it all up, on the tills we can’t change the price, generally we ask a supervisor to check the price. Unless it is a blatant try on they let it go, self scan is a different matter, quite a few customers make mistakes, not my problem

I find Home Bargains can be a big culprit of shelf/till prices - I almost always check my receipt there or question prices at the till. Not long ago I bought a drinks trolley, the price on the shelf was £19.99 till said £29.99 - I questioned it, when it was checked they said the label was for the black one and I had the gold one but there was no label for the gold, so I had it for the lower price. God knows why there is £10 difference for two different colours anyway. Another time a multiple pack of Jelly was on offer at 75p, it went through at 99p (not a lot but it was the principle) when they checked that one came back with another pack and said it was 2 for 99p I hadn't seen that but took it anyway.

As Wellbeck explains, the technicality is that a shop is not obliged to sell at the price shown if it is incorrect. It’s a common misconception that they should sell at the ‘wrong’ price because of the incorrect label and in some instances they will, but only as an act of goodwill.

cc

In 2019 I was looking for an oval Le Creuset casserole on the manufacturer's webside and saw that you got a 30% discount if you bought more than one product. I put two HUGE casseroles in my basket to see what I could save and saw to my delight that instead of costing £540 they were coming up at £105 so I bought them both. (Today the full price would be around £650).
The next day I got an email saying that there had been a glitch but I pointed out that they'd taken my money so had actually already sold them to me. After a day or two and a bit of to-ing and fro-ing they agreed to send the goods.
I do love a bargain and really appreciate that they were honest enough to honour the sale.
They are large enough to hold a leg of lamb or a really big chicken and I also use them (with lids) to bake beautiful loaves.

Bargainacious cc!

Jaime

Pinkjj27 please can I support your advice re heartburn & Gaviscon. My mother had heartburn for several years & was always told by her GP to carry on with the Gaviscon. In 2020 we discovered it was not simple indigestion but pancreatic cancer. She died 5 weeks after diagnosis.
Please press your GP for further investigation, particularly if you have also been told you are borderline diabetic as I have since discovered this too can be an early indication of pancreatic cancer.
It is a silent killer so please speak up.

So sorry for your loss

welbeck

you have no right to purchase it at the lower price.
as the price indicator acts as an invitation to treat, so you offer the price you expect to pay, and the shop decides whether to accept your offer.
that would lead to a binding contract.
this is an aspect of contract law.
but, under criminal legislation, it is an offence to ask for a higher price than one indicated, as that makes the shelf edge label a misleading price indication.
but there are defences of due diligence.
the shop probably has a programme of randomly testing that price indications are correct.
they will keep records of this.
which would probably be enough to make out the due diligence defence.
the correct procedure in your incident is for the shop to withdraw the item from sale, once the discrepancy has been drawn to their attention.
i hope this is clear, but realise that it might not be.

This is the correct legal position, but they often will sell at the lower price for good pr.

I know in Scotland prescriptions medicines are free regardless of your age or income. We can also get a range of free medicines straight from the pharmacy if you are sixty or over, a child, etc. You just have to tell your chemist you want to join the minor ailments list if you are eligible (you can only register with one chemist but can change to another one easily) and that's it. Was a godsend when my children were constantly getting headlice as one family in their little school wouldn't treat their children and the special shampoo was quite expensive. Not sure if it is the same in England but am surprised at how few people know about it when I mention t.

nothing like that in england as far as i know.
GPs are instructed not to write prescriptions except for POMs.
so would have to pay for those items for children, as they are not POMs, regular formulations are not.

One of the benefits of devolution rather than independence Lucy.

welbeck

nothing like that in england as far as i know.
GPs are instructed not to write prescriptions except for POMs.
so would have to pay for those items for children, as they are not POMs, regular formulations are not.

There definitely is...I'm northwest....its called 'care at the chemist'

welbeck

nothing like that in england as far as i know.
GPs are instructed not to write prescriptions except for POMs.
so would have to pay for those items for children, as they are not POMs, regular formulations are not.

I'm 58...but have medical exemption....my gp puts everything on my repeat....including all OTC items eg gaviscon...aveeno cream