Free product ads are considered one of the biggest lures and are usually misleading. This also applies to an advertisement for free glasses from the Hartlauer chain. Because what should be free glasses was accompanied by an expensive glasses insurance for a minimum of 237.60 euros. The Association for Consumer Information (VKI) found this misleading and sued on behalf of the Ministry of Social Affairs. The trial ended with a settlement.
Hartlauer may no longer advertise eye-catching glasses with 0.00 euros in the future without sufficiently referring to the financial burden.
Pairing “always presents problems”
The glasses offer was an “expensive free offer”. Offers can be summarized as such supposed bargains, where the receipt of a product advertised as free is inextricably linked to the use of a paid service or the purchase of another product, ie tie-in offers. “In practice, there are many forms of coupled offers, which time and time again leads to irritation among consumers and complaints to the Association for Consumer Information,” says lawyer Barbara Bauer.
In the case of Hartlauer, branded glasses including Swiss premium glasses were advertised for 0 euros. Consumers had to take out eyewear insurance for this with a minimum contract term of 24 months (“carefree glasses package”). In the cheapest variant (9.90 euros insurance premium per month) costs of at least 237.60 euros were incurred.
Hints in barely legible handwriting in footnote
Compared to the price of the glasses of 0.00 euros, which appeared prominently and conspicuously in the advertising, the reference to the costs arising from the glasses insurance faded into the background. For example, the insertion in the commercial broadcast was only visible for a few seconds on many TV channels and the reference in printed advertising was found in barely legible handwriting in the footnote. This misled the attractiveness of the “free offer”, the VKI noted and complained. Hartlauer felt like it.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
