These are the promotional campaigns “Special Wednesday” and “Valentine's Day Wednesday”, carried out at the beginning of last year in the Biedronka chain of stores. They were intended to encourage customers to make purchases by offering a “100% refund on the voucher”. However, as the proceedings conducted by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection showed, the reality turned out to be much more complicated than the advertisements promised.
As a result, the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, Tomasz Chróstny, imposed a fine of nearly PLN 105 million on Jeronimo Martins Polska, the owner of the network, for misleading consumers and violating their collective interests.
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Advertisements for promotional campaigns suggested that customers would be able to use the vouchers they received for any product on their next purchases. In reality, however, consumers faced numerous restrictions and conditions that they often became aware of only after making the purchase.
For example, customers who bought a specific product received a voucher, but it could only be used for purchases from a selected product category, such as juices, cosmetics or washing products, and this was provided that additional requirements were met, such as a minimum purchase amount.
During the proceedings, the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection found that advertisements on the radio, mobile application, Facebook and in Biedronka stores omitted key information regarding the terms of the promotion. Customers were not informed, among others: about the need to spend a certain amount on purchases from a selected category or about the limit of one voucher per person.
This information was available only in the regulations on the chain's website, on notice boards in stores or on the voucher itself, which, according to the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, did not meet transparency standards.
Read also: Biedronka with accusations. The fine may reach up to PLN 30 billion
The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection imposes a fine
As Tomasz Chróstny emphasizes, the entrepreneur in his advertising materials “omitted very important information and conditions of promotional campaigns, including their limitations.”
— In the advertising message encouraging people to make purchases, the entrepreneur omitted very important information and conditions of promotional campaigns, including their limitations. He indicated that the products could be purchased “for free” and described the voucher as “free”. This could have caused consumers to decide to take advantage of the promotion, thinking that they would save on products that they would be able to choose freely, says the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, Tomasz Chróstny.
He adds: – The selection of advertising content and the method of presenting it must not mislead consumers. The marketing message should contain information that is most important from the consumers' point of view, so that they do not have to find it on their own. Entrepreneurs are obliged to submit them at the right time, legibly and unambiguously – says the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, Tomasz Chróstny.
Read also: The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection attacks the owner of Biedronka. Allegations of collusion, the company faces a high penalty
“What do tulips have to do with frozen foods?”
Examples of consumer complaints show how much confusion these promotional campaigns have caused. One of the customers described that after purchasing Wedel marshmallow, instead of a voucher for any purchases, he received a voucher for the purchase of juices with a minimum value of PLN 25. Others pointed out the absurd combinations of promotional products with categories for which the voucher could be used, asking rhetorically: “What do tulips have to do with frozen food?”
The evidence collected by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection indicates that the actions of Jeronimo Martins Polska were intentional and violated the collective interests of consumers. As a result, a fine of PLN 104,722,000 was imposed on the company. PLN 16. The decision is not yet final and the company has the right to appeal to court.
