Boots Ireland has admitted it broke pricing laws during its 2023 Black Friday sale, leading to an investigation by the Competition and Consumer Commission (CCPC).
The retail giant appeared before Judge Anthony Halpin at Dublin District Court on Monday in a case involving electric toothbrushes and perfumes.
The case was heard under a law requiring retailers to base any discounts on the lowest price in effect for at least the past 30 days and to clearly display that price on price tags or in advertising materials.
The focus was on Oral-B toothbrushes. Judge Halpin, noting that the incorrect price information was due to “human error”, the company's lack of previous wrongdoing and its admission of guilt, said Boots could avoid a conviction.
He adjourned the case until June 26, adding that if €4,624 was paid to cover the CCPC's legal costs and €1,000 to the Little Flower Penny Dinners charity, he would apply the Conditional Release of Offenders Act.
It was one of the first cases brought under new pricing rules introduced in 2022.
Competition authority spokesman Cathal O Braonina said an offence occurred when a retailer advertised a price reduction without stating the previous price of the item, which must be the lowest price offered by that retailer in the last 30 days.
Boots Ireland pleaded guilty to one charge while the other two were withdrawn. Counsel explained that the offer was made on the basis that the company would cover costs and the court would hear the facts on all three charges.
Mr O'Braonain said CCPC Commissioner David Mulholland had been tasked with monitoring and managing price reduction advertisements on retailer websites ahead of the Black Friday sale on 17 November 2023.
Data provided by Boots showed three breaches occurred.
The first violation concerned a limited edition Oral-B iO 10 black electric toothbrush, which was sold for €470, down from €999.99 previously.
The price reduction announcement date was November 16, 2023, however, this was not the lowest price applied to the product in the last 30 days.
Judge Halpin noted that from November 11 to 14 it was sold at the same price – 470 euros, therefore 999.99 euros could not be considered the correct previous price.
The second item was another Oral-B electric toothbrush, advertised on November 16 for €240, with the previous price listed at €590.99. However, from November 9 to 14, it was offered at a lower price of €228.
The latest charge concerned the sale of Dior eau de toilette for €104, down from €123, although it had been sold earlier in the month for a lower price of €94.
Boots' lawyer, Eoin Mac Aoda, pleaded for leniency, telling Judge Halpin it was a human error and that the company was remorseful for its actions.
He pointed out that about 104,000 products were on sale on Black Friday, and these violations represent only a small fraction of the total number of products sold at reduced prices.
Since then, a full review of internal processes has been carried out and instructions, protocols and management have been updated.
Mr Macaouda said Boots was happy to make the donation and cover the costs.
Judge Halpin noted that Boots was a highly respected company in Ireland with branches and staff across the country, adding that a senior compliance officer had travelled from the UK to attend the proceedings.
The levy was levied in accordance with the European Union (Product Price Marking Requirements) (Amendment) Regulation, which came into force in November 2022.
On March 10, Lifestyle Sports (Ireland), DID Electrical Appliances, Rath-Wood Home and Garden World also pleaded guilty to similar charges.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
