It’s not just around the Christmas period that suppliers try to use common tricks – such as countdowns and limited quantities – to convince consumers to buy quickly. Criminals also use Black Friday week to steal money and personal information with fraudulent fake shopping offers. This way you save and avoid falling into the (bargain) trap!
Black Friday on November 24 is approaching and is already being announced with slogans such as “Are you ready to save big?”, “The sale of the year in Austria” or “Get the best offers”.
But not all that glitters is always gold! Retailers know that they can attract many customers with so-called bargains.
Tips from the Chamber of Labor (AK) to protect yourself against possible fraud and to distinguish good offers from pure fraud:
- Be careful, dealer tricks: Whether it’s limited time special offers, countdowns or very limited offers, it’s all part of the tricks stores use so you don’t have to think twice before purchasing a product. Please note, it does not have to be a bargain! However, dealers should always tell you what the lowest price has been in the last 30 days.
- View prices: View price developments on comparison platforms such as geizhals.at or idealo.at. Here’s how to tell if you’re actually saving money on the supposedly great deals.
- Look at the fine print: The best actions are meaningless if there are many exceptions. For example, Black Friday advertising promises discounts of up to ‘minus 90 percent’ and the small print shows that this only applies to a very small number of products. Often you can only save on older goods.
- Please note additional costs: High shipping costs and additional fees can make cheap products more expensive. This may, for example, be possible for bulky freight or deliveries from other EU countries where customs duties are due. If you don’t like the goods, it can be expensive to pay for return shipping yourself.
- What applies where in the event of revocation: For online purchases you usually have a right of withdrawal of 14 days from receipt of the goods; exceptions to this are goods that spoil quickly. This does not apply in the store, unless the store voluntarily grants you the right to withdraw or exchange the item.
- Advertising on social media: Be careful when you come across great deals through ads, messages or videos. See what others say about a store, whether it accepts different payment methods, and whether it is noticeably cheap. At fakeshop.at/shopcheck you can see whether you are dealing with a fraudulent provider.
- View imprint and general terms and conditions: Always inquire where the dealer is located and what costs are involved. Tip: Check the legal notices and general terms and conditions!
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.
