The Darmstadt Regional Court has made an important ruling that directly affects the practice of advertising in online retail. The focus is on the issue of misleading advertising, particularly when it comes to the availability and pricing of products.
The court’s reasoning
The court dealt with a case in which a balcony power plant was advertised. The advertising flyer, which was also available online, promised that consumers could use the product to generate electricity for 5 cents. This was emphasized by a sample calculation and the illustration of a 5 cent coin.
The court found that this advertising was misleading. When reading the flyer, an average consumer would assume that they can purchase a product that is available at the advertised conditions – in this case a balcony power plant for 750 euros that produces electricity for 5 cents. This assumption is underlined by the presentation of the “plug & play” set.
The court also pointed out that the perspective of the average consumer is decisive. The seller’s argument that the sample calculation merely served to demonstrate the economic viability of producing electricity for 5 cents was not considered sufficient to change the objective recipient perspective.
Additional considerations
The court also took into account that the flyer was from 2021. It was found that an average consumer might well assume that the offer is still current as long as no new status is available. In view of the known changes in electricity prices and the prices of solar panels in recent years, the seller should have been particularly careful and should not have distributed the flyer.
Conclusion
This ruling by Darmstadt Regional Court underlines the importance of transparency and truthfulness in advertising. It shows that consumers can legitimately expect advertised products to be available at the stated conditions. For online retailers, this means that they need to carefully review their advertising practices and ensure that they accurately and clearly display the actual availability and prices of their products.
