By Samuel Kutty — MUSCAT: March 15 - Close on the heels of the new executive regulations on consumer protection, an official at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said penal action will be taken against dodgy deals in the names of ‘sales’ and ‘special offers’ by shop owners.
“Shops which announce sales should state the percentage of discount being given and on the other hand customers are entitled to know the original price before the promotion,” said the official.
According to a ministerial decision 218/2015, it is obligatory that distributors or shopping malls obtain permission from the ministry before announcing the sale promotion.
Adverts and billboards as well as hoarding announcing sales are common in almost all shops including hypermarkets.
While some shops offer a “flat 20 per cent to 60 per cent, many others have posters for ‘buy one, get one free’. In some cases, the same ‘sale or promotion’ posters are found in front of the shops throughout the year.
The official pointed out that the ministerial decision mandates that shop owners put price tags in Arabic and English on the items before and after the sale is announced.
“Also they should put up a yellow card on defective products that are on sale and a green card for products that are not on sale”, the official said.
These measures are aimed at boosting transparency and build customers’ trust during sales, he added.
But the fact is that many shops resort to unfair trade practices to make more profits although there are quite a few genuine sales where consumers can get good value for money.
“Those shop owners who mislead or hoodwink consumers should be exposed and brought to book. And there is need for all retailers to follow an overall policy of transparency and honesty”, said Fahd al Hadhrami, an official at Muscat Municipality.
The reduction should be on the original price and the percentage of cut in price should be clearly stated in the advertisements as well as at the posters on shop windows.
“The retailer announcing a sale should also clearly state the purpose of the sale”, he said.
Under the consumer protection regulations, making false or misleading claims about a bargain sale or not selling at the price advertised, constitutes an unfair trade practice.
Similarly, advertising a bargain sale without intending to offer it at the stated price or for a period and in quantities that are not reasonable is also an unfair trade practice.
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