Price Fixing

[samuel5]

Hi all,

Hope someone can offer some advice here.

I purchased an LG TV from Richer Sounds for £8000 on the 30/11/13.
All retailers such as John Lewis and Curry's were selling it for the same price.

As soon as the 18/12/13 the price was slashed everywhere to £5000 but I only noticed this a week ago.

I am a very good customer in the Richer Sounds shop and I complained to the manager there.
After a few days waiting for the outcome they offered me a £2000 refund.
They said LG tell them what price to sell at.

I was not happy with this, it is not the money but the principle.
So I phoned LG head office and they told me they set an RRP and that's all.
They do not tell the retailers to slash the price like Richer Sounds are claiming.

Anyone know where I stand on this?
If Richer Sounds are telling the truth then this is price fixing which is illegal.
LG know full well the price should be £5000, but they sell it for £8000 for a few weeks to make it look like a great deal when their retailers reduce it to £5000.

Any advise is much appreciated.

Sam

 

[MikeJ]

What exactly are you complaining about. You were happy to pay £8k for a TV. If you didn't think the TV was worth £8k, then you shouldn't have bought it.

 

[japancool]

You don't stand anywhere on it. The price you paid was the price the item was offered for sale at the time. The retailer is under no statutory obligation to offer you a refund at all, and the fact that you're getting one is entirely down to goodwill on their part.

LG don't "know" the price "should" be £5000. Clearly, the £8000 price was not a barrier to you buying it. If you want to argue that they had every intention of reducing the price at a later date, well, maybe they did but that's irrelevant. When you bought it, it was offered for sale at £8000. No one made you buy it.

 

[simon field]

8 grand on a telly and I bet it's still full of the same old crap!

 

[Vectis]

Sorry, can't get past the idea that anyone would pay £5,000, let alone £8,000, for a TV.

 

[samuel5]

Few pointless replies but thanks anyway!

If LG are telling John Lewis, Curries and Richer Sounds to start selling at 8k and then a few weeks later reduce to 5K then I'm sure that is price fixing which is illegal.

Anyway, Richer Sounds have agreed to refund the 3k difference after I kicked up a fuss.

Sam

 

[MikeJ]

LG can set an RRP. It's up to the retailers if they want to follow the RRP, but clearly they do.

If LG then want to adjust their price to the retailers, and change the RRP, then that's up to them.

It's not price fixing. Glad you got £3k back, but that was their choice rather than anything they were obliged to do.

(advice, btw, not advise)

 

[vvaannmmaann]

8 grand is that all? I got one of these for Christmas.

The 55 inch PrestigeHD Supreme Rose Edition.It is coated with 18 K rose gold weighing close to 28 kilograms. This TV has 72 round-cut, 1 carat diamonds.It was only 2.26 million dollars.

 

[Nuno]

RRP = Recommended Retail Price.
So the retailers are voluntarily taking the advice of the manufacturer as to what the recommended price should be.
Can you prove that the manufacturer threatened or used any sanctions if the RRP was not followed?
Next case.

 

[AmazingGiftBoxes]

What are you going to do when in 3 months time shop is going to lower the price to 3000 pounds???

You should be happy that you got 3000 pounds back and stop crying about it already.

Jerry

 

[10032012]

Manufacturers have this power. For high mark up products (such as high end TVs!), how many people have decided to then offer it £500 cheaper than currys and the like on their ecommerce website and laugh all the way to the bank?!

There is a thing called resale price maintenance where manufacturers can set a threshold of the minimum price (or maximum price). There is nothing stopping you sell it at your price just you wont ever get stocked again. Distributors enforce these strongly as well as direct from the manufacturer.

For many it is "price fixing" but the way I understand it... its a contractually enforced RRP or range, if you snooze you lose, rather than an agreement where all retailers agree to keep a price high which indeed is illegal.

It was really good of Richer Sounds to reimburse you some of the price as a good will gesture.

 

[prjbicell]

8 Grand for a TV ???? Have you got money coming out of your harris?.. does it make your breakfast in the morning?.. can you drive it too?.... good God man. If you have all that money to spend on a TV then what is a measly £3K to you and why are you whinging?

 

[Billmccallum]

its called business..... they make as much as possible at the higher rate when the product launches and those who like "the latest thing" rush out and buy at the premium rate, then prices start coming down.

When Flat screen TV's came out they were grossly over-priced, but people still bought them, but a couple of years later £250 in Adli.

 

[simon field]

8 grand is that all? I got one of these for Christmas.

The 55 inch PrestigeHD Supreme Rose Edition.It is coated with 18 K rose gold weighing close to 28 kilograms. This TV has 72 round-cut, 1 carat diamonds.It was only 2.26 million dollars.

Oh vvaannmmaann, sometimes - just sometimes - you are such a bourgeois pig.

 

[ricky776]

http://www.therichest.com/business/technology/the-10-most-expensive-televisions-in-the-world/

 

[benb]

Sounds like a lot of people are jealous you can afford to drop £8k on a TV...

 

[cjd]

The distributor/manufacturer sets the RRP, the retailer decides whether to follow that advice but most will be close to it.

In fact, it's really the wholesale price that mostly sets the retailer's price. In order to knock £2,000 off the price permanently everywhere, LG will have also lowered their price to the retailer.

 

[vvaannmmaann]

Oh vvaannmmaann, sometimes - just sometimes - you are such a bourgeois pig.

That's the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.Thank you.

 

[Vectis]

Sounds like a lot of people are jealous you can afford to drop £8k on a TV...

Not sure 'jealous' is quite the word I'd use here, especially as the OP is now complaining about having paid too much.

If I'd spent £8k on a TV I think I'd probably be keeping quiet about it, especially with the missus. And if the price went down by £3k shortly after I'd bought it I certainly wouldn't be telling everyone!

But the OP is right, it's all a bit pointless.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

well at least you can afford Sky with the refund

 

[harper101]

Glad there was a refund

We do not have a TV as expensive as that,
but thanks anyway we have a TV,
for not all people in the world have their own TV..

(SORRY for out of topic reply..Pls. forgive me folks )

 

[MOIC]

You should thank Richer Sounds for being so generous in the refund they have given you.........................and you still want to complain?!

No pleasing some people.

 

[10032012]

I think this post acts as a good recommendation for Richer Sounds.

I cannot see many retailers agreeing such a refund at all. All credit to them.

 

[vvaannmmaann]

I think this post acts as a good recommendation for Richer Sounds.

I cannot see many retailers agreeing such a refund at all. All credit to them.

Credit to the OP surely?

 

[Lentinus]

I suspect what happened was all the retailers had it on for 8k for the statutory X amount of consecutive days before they could say "SALE!! was £8000 now only £4999!!!! - Hurry while stocks last!"

Have to say though that was extremely good of RS to refund you.

 

[MOIC]

Richer Sounds have a very good working relationship with their staff.....................and so it seems with their customers too!

Great credit to an individual person competing with the "Big Boys" and succeeding as well as giving a great after sales service.

I'm not sure that even John Lewis would have offered a 3K refund.

It goes to show how good service can help your business.

 

[Moneyman]

I am amazed that they paid up. why is it a surprise that technology drops in price very quickly after it is first released. It always happens. also November is normally the most expensive month to buy anything.

 

[GarethShaw]

Good on Richer Sounds for refunding the money.

I think I might buy that TV when it reaches £499 in 6 months!