i need some help with a book I wanted to buy

[shopaholic84]

I went into a shop the other day. they had a book for sale for 14.99 sealed in plastic. they had the exact same one not in plastic for people to look at. This had a price on it for 2.99. I took it to the counter and the woman went into the back, brought one out in plastic and said it was 14.99. I disagreed because the one I wanted had a 2.99 sticker on it, probably because it is unwrapped and shop soiled. She said it was 14.99 because the others were 14.99 and this one had the wrong label stuck on. I think Im in the right. Surely a shop has to sell you the item at the price labelled on it, even it was a mistake.

[zipadeedodah]

I'm sure someone who can explain it properly will come along and do just that.....but as I understand it, then no, the shop doesn't have to sell the book at the marked price.

By having the books out in the shop for sale they are inviting you - the customer - to make an offer to buy, which happens basically when you take the book to the counter to purchase it. It is only when the seller then accepts your offer to purchase the book that a contract is formed. The seller has the right to not accept this offer. There are a few acceptions to this, but this is the basic way it works I think.

[Ethel]

That is quite correct - goods on display are 'an invitation to treat'.

A shop does not have to sell anything to anybody an any price.

In exactly the same way, the customer can remove the goods from the shelf, take them to the checkout, and refuse to complete the purchase for any reason.

[loonytunes]

Its contract law. You have to have an offer and an acceptance of that offer to form the contract. The shop is not offering to sell to you, it is inviting you to make an offer which they can then decide to accept or not. There is no contrct betwen you until you offer to buy and they offer to sell at whatever price is agreed. Here, no price was agreed so, no contract.

[shopaholic84]

But I dont think thats fair if the book had 2.99 on the price label to then change it at the till to 14.99. I always thought that if the item was advertised at a certain price, that is the price you pay. It's happened before in a bigger store where they sold it to me at the price I saw even though it was a mistake.

[zipadeedodah]

Many shops will let you have it at the price marked - but this is their own choice, and they are not obliged to do so.

It may seem unfair, but mistakes do happen.

[bednobs]

is it fair that a shop should lose loads of money because some dopey 14 year old who works at the weekend put the wrong price on?

imagine if you were buying a yacht and someone had put 100 pounds on in error instead of 100 thousand pounds. would you still xpect to buy a yacht for 100 pounds?