Tesco Ireland pleads guilty to Clubcard pricing failures

Tesco has been found guilty of breaking the law in connection with how it displayed the price of products it was selling on promotion and ordered to pay €1,000 to a charity as well as covering the legal costs of the consumer watchdog that took the case.

Appearing before Dublin’s District Court on Monday morning, Tesco Ireland pleaded guilty to two sample counts of failing to comply with consumer protection law in how it displayed the price of products offered at a promotional price to its Clubcard holders.

Since the start of the cost-of-living crisis over two years ago, the British retailer has made a growing number of the products it sells on promotion only available to members of its loyalty scheme.

That policy decision has seen a proliferation of shelf stickers prominently advertising Clubcard prices but the absence of the detailed pricing information that is required by law prompted consumer concern with some people alerting the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC).

It carried out an investigation and found that Tesco had broken the law by failing to include unit pricing on Tesco Clubcard promotional shelf-edge labels. The breaches were identified during a CCPC inspection in August 2023.

Judge Anthony Halpin applied the Probation Act on Tesco Ireland for its failure to properly display the cost of some products and the retail giant was ordered to pay the legal costs of the CCPC.

It was also ordered to make a donation of €1,000 to the Little Flower Penny Dinners charity.

In a statement after the case came before the court, the CCPC said that consumers shopping for groceries “have to quickly evaluate a wide range of factors when deciding what products offer the best value for their money. Supermarkets are legally required to show unit pricing to make that process easier for consumers.”

Tesco Ireland was contacted for comment and while it did not address the judgement directly it is understood to have accepted the ruling.

In a statement a spokeswoman said Tesco Ireland “displays unit pricing for Clubcard Prices. This means as well as seeing the total price, the customer sees the unit price of the product (by volume or weight), to allow a direct comparison of the price per unit between the Clubcard Prices offer and the price of alternative products.

The CCPC said that displaying the price per kilo, litre or metre “allows consumers to compare the cost of similar products sold in different sizes. It also prevents consumers from being misled by packaging or discounts into paying more for less.”