A number of supermarkets and health and beauty retailers have carried out “concerning” loyalty scheme practices, which? have said.
This includes prices raised for a product before it is sold on “deal” to members at their original price, the consumer group’s investigation shows.
For example, Boots sold an Oral-B iO7 electric toothbrush at a non-member price of £400, while the members price was £150.
However, the product had only cost £400 for 13 days beforehand, before it was £150 for everyone, Which? found.
Which? says it has analyzed the price history of nearly 12,000 products at health and beauty retailers and supermarkets over the past year to uncover how real the loyalty savings have been.
It found that some products on a loyalty offer had been at the non-member price for less than half the year.
This applied to one in six Superdrug products and one in ten at Boots.
In supermarkets it was 10% at Tesco, 5% at Sainsbury’s and 3% at the Co-op.
Which? says that guidance on consumer law on price promotions needs to be updated.
The UK competition watchdog is also currently analyzing savings shown.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is investigating whether non-member or regular prices are artificially inflated by supermarkets to make their loyalty prices seem more attractive, but its first findings last month showed retailers are unlikely to mislead customers.
What have the supermarkets and retailers said?
ONE Super drug The spokeswoman said: “Our products are regularly on a mix of members-only prices, multi-buy promotions and price promotions open to everyone to ensure all our customers can save on their favorite products all year round.
“Each month we give our loyal Health & Beautycard members access to hundreds of health and beauty products at a lower price, and the survey highlights the value this brings to our members.”
ONE Boots The spokesperson said: “We have always been committed to offering customers great value and helping them save money across their health and beauty needs.
“All promotions, including Price Advantage, are assessed against all applicable laws and guidelines set by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute.”
ONE Tesco spokesman said: “All our Clubcard Price promotions follow strict rules, including considering how they compare to prices in the market, to ensure they represent real value and savings, and these rules have been approved by our Trading Standards Primary Authority.”
ONE Sainsbury’s The spokesman said: “More people are choosing to shop at Sainsbury’s and we know our customers are savvy shoppers who understand that factors such as inflation, out-of-season products or promotions can affect our prices.
“That doesn’t stop us from following industry price guidance and offering great value for the products our customers buy most – whether that’s with our low everyday prices, Aldi Price Match or Nectar Prices.”
ONE Co-op Spokesman said: “We know our member rates provide real value for our members.
“No base prices have increased to accommodate Co-op member prices and indeed many of the ‘all-customer’ prices were reduced to ensure the Co-op was competitive on key lines for all shoppers, whether they are members or not.”