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Fair Trading Act 1986

Unfair conduct - Unfair practices

19: Bait advertising

You could also call this:

"Don't advertise something you don't plan to sell at that price"

Illustration for Fair Trading Act 1986

You cannot advertise something for sale at a certain price if you do not intend to sell it at that price. You also cannot advertise something if you do not think you can supply it at that price. You must be able to supply the goods or services for a reasonable amount of time and in reasonable quantities. You must sell the goods or services at the advertised price for a reasonable time. This time is based on the type of business you have and the type of advertisement. If you are taken to court for not selling something at the advertised price, you can defend yourself if you offered the customer the goods or services at the right price and they accepted. You can also defend yourself if you offered the customer similar goods or services at the same price and they accepted.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM96945.

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Topics:
Money and consumer rights > Consumer protection
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"No more collecting stamps or tokens to get free stuff"

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"You can't make someone buy things by promising rewards for finding new customers"

Part 1Unfair conduct
Unfair practices

19Bait advertising

  1. No person shall, in trade, advertise for supply at a specified price goods or services which that person—

  2. does not intend to offer for supply; or
    1. does not have reasonable grounds for believing can be supplied by that person—
        1. at that price for a period that is, and in quantities that are, reasonable having regard to the nature of the market in which the person carries on business and the nature of the advertisement.

      1. Any person who has advertised goods or services for supply at a specified price shall offer such goods or services for supply at that price for a period that is, and in quantities that are, reasonable having regard to the nature of the market in which the person carries on business and the nature of the advertisement.

      2. In a prosecution of any person in relation to a failure to offer goods or services to a person (in this subsection referred to as the customer) in accordance with subsection (2), it is a defence if the person proves that—

      3. he offered to supply, or to procure another person to supply, goods or services of the kind advertised to the customer within a reasonable time, in a reasonable quantity, and at the advertised price and where the offer was accepted by the customer, the person has so supplied or procured another person to supply the goods or services; or
        1. he offered to supply immediately, or to procure another person to supply within a reasonable time, equivalent goods or services to the customer in a reasonable quantity and at the price at which the first-mentioned goods or services were advertised, and, where the offer was accepted by the customer, the person has so supplied, or procured another person to supply, such equivalent goods or services.

          Compare
          • 1969 No 12 s 10(3), (4)