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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

AIBU to be annoyed about a shop with the prices labelled wrongly?

15 replies

b1uebells · 22/08/2011 13:36

There was a stroller accessory pack labelled as £5.99, stating that it was reduced from £19.99. I thought it was a good deal so took one to the till, where the girl told me it was £19.99.
Someone came over to where they were advertised as being on sale, and I showed her the reduced sticker. She said the display must have been labelled incorrectly and probably a child had stuck it on ( while she looked the DCs) I know none of them had stuck it on, they were with me the whole time! infact I doubt any child had, as the display was high up, and hard to reach for adults let alone a child. Plus what would be the chances of finding a label with correct full price and same reduced rate and sticking the label on so it was totally intact?!
She then pulled the label off ( it tore) and said it was full price. (fine). If it tore for her getting it off how does she think a child carefully peeled it off one product and stuck it on this one.

AIBU to be a bit annoyed about how it was handled?? IMO they should have either given it to me at the price it was advertised as ( I know they don't have to but most places would as a good will gesture) or atleast apologised for incorrect labelling rather than making me feel like I had let the DC do this to get a cheap price.

OP posts:

LeggyBlondeNE · 22/08/2011 13:53

If it's priced that way in the shop they have to sell it at that price. At least that's what I was told the law was by my boss when working in a shop.

Sleepyspaniel · 22/08/2011 13:55

I don't think they should have given it you at the lower price sticker as it could set a precedent. However YANBU to expect polite customer service and an apology for the misunderstanding.

Icelollycraving · 22/08/2011 13:59

They don't legally have to sell at that lower price. It could be removed from the sales floor. Most companies do often give you the lower price as a goodwill gesture but as it was considerable % off then they were in their rights to ask for the correct price.

Sleepyspaniel · 22/08/2011 13:59

Leggy, in this scenario they don't have to sell it at that price. That's a myth. The shop reserves the right not to sell the goods at all. Imagine if someone deliberately changed a price on an item from £1000 to 10p and then took it to the till.

whats4teamum · 22/08/2011 14:00

If priced incorrectly they can withdraw it from sale. They do not have to sell it to you at the lower price.

controlpantsandgladrags · 22/08/2011 14:00

As a gesture of goodwill they could have given it to you at the reduce price displayed. They handled it badly and should have at least apologised. However they are not legally obliged to sell to you at the advertised price if the label has been put there in error.

DontGoCurly · 22/08/2011 14:00

I think that it's a misconception that the shop 'have to' sell at the marked price, but you can invoke that to treat en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invitation_to_treat thing if you want. But I don't think they are actually obliged to.

DontGoCurly · 22/08/2011 14:01

Argh invitation to treat

MeMySonAndI · 22/08/2011 14:02

What I found offensive is the way they handled it, it would have been much easier just to say, I'm afraid that this has been mislabeled and it costs xxx, do you still want to take it? rather than putting the blame on your part.

It was unnecessary and bloody rude.

Insomnia11 · 22/08/2011 14:23

In sales people often put things back in the wrong place, so on the 20% off rail instead of the 10% off rail, or sometimes swap prices deliberately. YANBU to be annoyed about how it was handled but it is legally correct.

mayorquimby · 22/08/2011 14:47

"If it's priced that way in the shop they have to sell it at that price. At least that's what I was told the law was by my boss when working in a shop."

Well he was wrong to tell you that as others have pointed out, it's an invitation to treat, not an offer.
Probably could have handled it better and many shops would have offered it at the incorrectly displayed price if they had thought it had been through the fault of their staff, but maybe not with such a large discrepancy (nearly 75%).

izzywhizzyletsgetbusy · 22/08/2011 15:01

As mayor has said, the price displayed is an 'invitation to treat' and the seller is not legally obliged to sell for the price shown on an item.

You may wish to consider whether to continue patronising a shop that frequently gets its advertised or displayed prices wrong.

HeidiKat · 22/08/2011 16:43

YANBU to be annoyed at how it was handled, I used to work in retail and once myself and a colleague witnessed a woman take a half price sticker off one item and stick it on another, she didn't realise we could see her as we were behind a clothes rail. She took it to the till and started kicking off when it rang through at full price, we did as we had been trained to do and apologised for the incorrect pricing and removed the item from the shop floor even though we knew full well it had been her, it was more than our jobs were worth to accuse her in case she complained to head office.

MumblingRagDoll · 22/08/2011 18:05

Yanbu. Happens all the blinking time! I once took a lamp to the till in a shop and it had a base and a shade...all screwed together with a tag tied round the bit where the bulb goes...saying "£20.00" it was a nice lamp...the girl at the till took it apart and told me the BASE was twenty and the shade was ten!

NO price on the shade whatsoever!

emmanumber3 · 22/08/2011 18:22

The way the assistant spoke to you seems rather rude to me. Surely if the item had been incorrectly priced (obviously by accident) an assistant should have just apologetically and politely explained that to you. If they were unwilling to sell the item at the lower price then fair enough, but there is no excuse for rudeness or insinuating (sp?) that you had allowed your DCs to mess with price labels!

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