ACCC sues Australia’s Woolworths and Coles for ‘illusory’ discounts

The promoted prices were either the same as or higher than the regular prices before the spike.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has filed lawsuits against Woolworths and Coles, accusing both supermarket chains of misleading customers with false discount pricing on hundreds of products.

According to the ACCC, Woolworths and Coles raised prices on many items by at least 15% for short periods before promoting them as part of their "Prices Dropped" and "Down Down" campaigns. 

The promoted prices were either the same as or higher than the regular prices before the spike, giving the false impression of a discount.

“We allege that each of Woolworths and Coles breached the Australian Consumer Law by making misleading claims about discounts, when the discounts were, in fact, illusory,” said ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb.

The ACCC claims Woolworths inflated prices on 266 products over 20 months, whilst Coles did the same with 245 products over 15 months. Affected products include popular items like Tim Tams, Listerine mouthwash, and Kellogg’s cereal.

The watchdog is seeking penalties and orders requiring the supermarkets to fund charitable meal programs. 

Meanwhile, Woolworths and Coles have yet to respond to the legal action.