The Euro BOGOF blindly blunders on
Just in case there is anyone who doesn't believe in the maxim 'There ain't no such thing as a free lunch', the law has come to their aid. The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 implemented parts of the EU Unfair Commercial Practices Directive into UK law in May. The Regulations specify a number of prohibited practices, but the one which has caused debate has been 'free' offers.
The Regulations state that describing a product as 'gratis', 'free', 'without charge' or similar is prohibited if the consumer has to pay anything other than the unavoidable cost of responding to the commercial practice and collecting or paying for delivery of the item.
With no further explanation as to what may be considered an 'unavoidable cost', confusion reigns. How do we handle promotions such as '50% extra free', giveaways such as books, and 'by-one-get-one-free' (BOGOFs)?
The unofficial word from the European Commission is that it supports continuance of such promotions as did the House of Lords during its debate on the legislation. The Local Authorities Co-ordinators of Regulatory Services also supports the view that the Regulations will not prevent the use of the word 'free' in BOGOF offers nor the continued promotion of free gifts throughout the UK.
The Office of Fair Trading has recently published guidance on the Regulations at: http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/business_leaflets/530162/oft1008.pdf. This gives an example of a scenario which would be considered prohibited: "A trader advertises a 'free' gift. He then tells consumers that in order to receive their 'free' gift they need to pay an extra fee." But given the number of enquiries coming in through the office at Leatherhead Food International, this was a missed opportunity for greater clarification and some more practical scenarios.
Kath Veal is business manager, Regulatory and Technical Consultancy Services at Leatherhead Food International
