Petrol Price - can you do this ?

[homerthegrea]

I have filled my car up today at a local garage who displayed the price as 00.9p meaning 100.9p per litre but his display board does not have enough spaces for this, as i went to pay there was a man in front of me who handed over a couple of pounds and told the attendant that as he was displaying his petrol for sale at 00.9p per litre that was all he was going to pay, after a big slanging match the man told the attendant under the trade descriptions act that was all he had to pay and walked out, the garage took the mans reg and phoned the police - all i'm wondering is, is this man in his rights to do this as i could not wait for the police to arrive - just as a note i paid full price.

[jake-the-peg]

Under the law a price label constitutes an invitation for a customer to make an offer to buy the goods at that price.

It's a common misaprehension that the shop has to sell you the goods at the advertised price.

A shop is not obliged to accept that offer so I suspect he's on very shakey ground.

But I think there are specific laws regarding the displaying of the price of petrol and the price must be displayed and state the size of the lettering etc.

So the garage may not come out smelling of roses either!

[Catso]

I believe the law is something like 'if the advertised price is obviously in error, then the retailer isn't bound to honour it'.

EG 0.9p obviously isn't the price of the petrol, but 89.9p may (just) conceivably be. If the latter, you probably would have a legal entitlement to buy at that price.

[ugly_bob]

he's made an offer at that price, the garage refuses, then he must remove the petrol from his car or he'll be stealing it.
Unless there's something specifically covering petrol sales.

[Catso]

jake, true, no retailer is obliged to sell to anyone.

But imagine the scenario where you see a garage with petrol at 89.9p, you go to the pump, and if the garage switches it on, then that's the garage accepting your offer to buy at 89.9p. You made the offer to buy at 89.9p, because that's whet the garage told you it would cost. The stuff is in your tank by the time you come to pay.

But we have all been ignoring what it may have said on the pump itself, which introduces a further complication.

[jake-the-peg]

That's an interesting argument Catso especially if the pump said 00.9 too!

[homerthegrea]

forgot to say the pump stated 00.9p

[Hapus]

As an aside to all this - apparently you do not have to give someone change. My father came home all excited one day after having read this in a magazine somewhere. If someone gives you a tenner for goods costing 4.99, then you are not bound legally to give back 5.01.
Though you'd be out of business quite quickly!

[Ghost~Rider]

It`s the same kind of scenario as Argos had a few years back when they advertised TV`s on the website for �1.99 instead of �199. They sold hundreds before they realised, and only a few were honest enough to take them back. They argued to other customers who had bought one that because it was an obvious mistake whilst printing, the customers had to pay full price for the TV.

I think a lot of it is at your own discretion. Obviously, both the fuel and the TV`s were not at the correct price, so most people would just accept the full price and get on with it.

One final note, I am sure Retailers who advertise prices wether it is fuel prices or clothes, chocolates etc have a clause which says " Prices indicated may vary without notice" which means they can basically charge you what they like at the till, but again, discretion is observed.