New consumer protection rules have recently come into force amending the price indication regulations.

Regulation 5A focuses on the issue of transparency of price reduction announcements; it specifically stipulates that when a seller announces a price reduction, the seller must also indicate the prior price before the discounted price.

The new rules specify that the prior price to which the discounted price is compared to, must be the lowest price the product was sold by the trader within a period of at least 30 days preceding the price reduction announcement. In situations where the goods have been for sale for less than 30 days, the prior price must be the lowest price at which the product was sold before the sale.

With regard to goods that are liable to deteriorate or expire rapidly, the prior price is the price the goods were sold before the price reduction is applied.

Concerning situations where the price reduction is progressively increased during a promotion or a sales period, the prior price in this case should be the price the products were sold at before the first price reduction. 

The aim of these new rules is to prevent traders from artificially inflating the reference price and thus misleading consumers about the amount of discount

The main aim of these new rules is to prevent traders from artificially inflating the reference price and thus misleading consumers about the amount of discount. All sellers are obliged to ensure full compliance with these new rules as non-compliance may result in the initiation of criminal proceedings, where upon conviction, fines may be imposed by the court.