The OFT has said it is planning to investigate online and high street retailers and how they handle promotions such as two-for-one offers and limited period-only sales. It believes deals like this could be misleading to consumers and hide the true cost of a purchase.
One criticism of retail deals such as what are known ni retail as ‘twofers’ (two for the price of one) is that the consumer has no reference as to what the price for ‘one’ is based on. In theory it could be more expensive than the price of buying two equivalent products elsewhere.
According to the two for deals still make up the bulk of promotional marketing in the big four grocers Asda, Sainbury's, Tesco and Morrisons.
The investigation will be split into two parts, the first examining online pricing tailored to a customer’s personal information. The second will focus on prices practices that could mislead customers.
As a result of the enquiries the OFT could make recommendations to government regulators about amending the rules on retailer promotions and even initiate legal action against offending companies.
The watchdog said it would be looking at the practice of increasing the product through the buying process. This form of ‘drip pricing’ is popular with airlines such as Ryanair, who add extra charges for online check in and luggage.
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