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21 October 2005
Bargain hunters will be able to splurge with more confidence after new guidelines offering them more protection were revealed today.
Shoppers hitting the sales can now be doubly sure that there's no catch behind the great deal staring them in the face, with the new regulations aiming to ensure clarity in discount dealings - especially those involving comparisons with previous prices.
The backgrounds to bargain deals will be explained more legibly and identifiably to customers, ensuring that they know exactly what they are getting and are able to assess the true merit of a particular deal.
Kevin Hawkins, director general of the British Retail Consortium (BRC), welcomed the new code of practice - an update of the version issued in 1988.
He said: "The BRC have always supported this voluntary code and were very happy to be involved in updating and improving it to reflect the changes in modern retailing. The code provides useful guidance to retailers and more importantly, reassurance for their customers."
With consumers bucking recent trends to spend twice as much in September as expected, according to the Office for National Statistics, the signs are that spending will continue to rise in time for the January sales - suggesting that the new guidelines for those who claim to be providing bargains are timely indeed.
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