CHRISTMAS PROMOTIONS AND DISCOUNTS – WHAT ARE THE LEGAL REQUIREMENTS FOR TRADERS?
The Christmas holidays are the period with the most intensive price reductions, aggressive advertising, and increased online and offline shopping. At the same time, this is when traders most often commit violations related to consumer protection, which may lead to serious sanctions.
With this article, we aim to provide practical guidance on what traders may and may not do when organizing Christmas promotions.
1. What does the law consider a “price reduction”?
A price reduction is any message that may create the impression among consumers that a product is offered under more favorable conditions. This includes not only percentage discounts but also wording such as:
- “Christmas promotion”
- “Super price”
- “Great discount”
- “Previous price / new price,” and similar formulations.
When making such statements, traders must be careful not to violate the rules or harm consumers’ rights.
Example of an unlawful promotion:
An online shop advertises a “Christmas promotion – BGN 99” for a product that is normally sold for BGN 99 and has not actually been discounted. In this case, there is no real price reduction, and the advertisement may be considered a misleading commercial practice.
2. The previous price – the most common mistake made by traders
When announcing price reductions, traders are obliged to indicate the previous price. The previous price is the lowest price applied to the product, even if only once, during the 30 days preceding the reduction.
In this sense, the following practices are not permitted:
- a short-term price increase during the second half of November, followed by a “big Christmas discount” for the period 1 December – 10 December, whereby the “previous price” is indicated as the increased price in the second half of November,
or
- deliberately indicating a higher “previous price” that was valid more than 30 days ago in order to make the current discount appear larger.
In contrast, the following practice is permissible:
A product has been sold for BGN 120 / EUR 61.36 during the last 30 days → it may be reduced to BGN 95 / EUR 48.57, provided that both prices (previous and new) are clearly indicated.
3. When is the message "Up to 70% off" misleading?
During the holidays, advertisements such as “up to –70%” are frequently used.
The law allows such wording only if:
- there are genuinely products with the stated discount, i.e., in the example above, there are products discounted by 70%;
- the products discounted by the maximum advertised percentage are not just isolated items but represent a noticeable proportion of all discounted products.
An example of a violation would be a situation where only 1–2 items out of a total of 100 are discounted by 70%, while the remaining products have price reductions of up to 20%. In such a case, there is a high risk of misleading consumers, which is not permitted.
4. Limited quantities and time periods – when are they allowed?
Statements such as “today only,” “last items,” or “Christmas only” are permitted only if they are objectively true.
The trader must be able to prove:
- that the actual duration of the promotion is indeed only one working day;
- that the available quantities are genuinely limited.
If a “today only” promotion is renewed every day (often with the aim of gradually selling off large quantities of slow-moving stock), this constitutes a misleading commercial practice.
5. What are the sanctions for violations?
All of the above is important because the Consumer Protection Act provides for sanctions in the event of violations, and the Consumer Protection Commission closely monitors compliance:
- for unfair commercial practices – a fine ranging from BGN 1,000 to BGN 30,000, and up to BGN 50,000 in the case of a repeated violation;
- for false or misleading price information – sanctions of similar amounts;
- in cases of systematic violations – possible additional measures by the supervisory authorities.
In addition to financial consequences, the reputational risk for traders should not be underestimated.
6. Conclusion
Christmas promotions are a powerful tool for increasing sales, but they also entail significant legal risks. Compliance with the rules on price reductions and consumer protection requires prior preparation, not last-minute reactions. A timely legal review of promotional campaigns can help avoid substantial sanctions and post-holiday issues, while also building consumer trust and a strong corporate image.
“Dr. Miroslava Hristova” Law Firm can provide full assistance on all matters related to consumer protection law and the lawful conduct of promotional campaigns. For more information, please contact us at office@recht.bg.
The information contained in this article is based on the legislation in force at the time of publication and does not constitute legal advice or guidance for action by interested parties. All liability is expressly excluded.