Furniture shops cannot keep silent about hidden costs when advertising bargains, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said on Wednesday.
The ASA has ruled against a Furniture City advertisement that did not reflect hidden costs — such as insurance and delivery charges — in its advertised prices.
A customer, Michelle Reinhard, had complained about in-store advertising for a mattress at a Furniture City outlet, and about a brochure inserted in the Randburg Sun.
The in-store advertisement showed the price of the mattress as R2 999, or R131 per month for 24 months after paying a deposit of R280.
Reinhard paid a deposit of R500. To her surprise, she was told to pay R230 a month.
The increase was attributed to additional charges for a magazine subscription, insurance, delivery charges and an administration fee. After negotiations, certain charges were removed, but the total instalment was R133.
After scrutinising the respondent’s print advertising, the ”terms and conditions” were found at the bottom of the last page in small print.
The ASA found that the in-store material made no mention of any additional costs, nor did it indicate that any conditions were attached to the offer.
”From the above, it is clear that the in-store material is misleading as the indicated price of instalments is not an accurate reflection of what the consumer would have to pay,” the ASA said in a statement.
It also found that the only material difference between the in-store advertising and the brochure was the disclaimer that appeared in small print at the end of the brochure.
The ASA noted in its ruling that, if the majority of consumers have to pay insurance, delivery and other hidden costs, those costs should be reflected in the price.
The ASA ruled that the advertisements must be withdrawn immediately on receipt of the ruling, and they may not be used again in their current format. — Sapa