Promises and guarantees used in marketing can be problematic promotional tools.
”Try it for 14 days. If you're not satisfied you'll get your money back.” This is how DANONE Oy advertised its healthy Activia yogurt. In connection with the impressive marketing there was a mention in very small print about the total refund being maximum 10 Euros. It was impossible to know the actual price for the two-week trial period, because shops price their products independently. The customer would have been surprised not to get the total refund if the product didn’t work within the promised time and the cost of the trial had exceeded 10 Euros. The company was reprimanded that the Euro-definite restriction was in conflict with the main message of the advertisement.
Use of price guarantee is forbidden
Active Nutrition International advertised a price guarantee on its nutritional website. The company promised to double the price difference if the customer could demonstrate that he/she could have bought the same product somewhere else at a lower price. The Consumer Agency interfered, because the Market Court has forbidden the use of price guarantee in its settlement procedure.
The term price guarantee gives consumers the impression that the company has, on behalf of the consumer, reliably found out that it is the cheapest place to purchase the product. Price guarantee is in itself a claim for greater affordability which should be proven with price comparison. The claim for greater affordability can greatly influence the demand for the product. Market Court has justified the ban on price guarantee by explaining that the company actually leaves the price comparison to the customer. KUV/1205/41/2009,KUV 1933/41/2009