Kogan ‘Tax Time’ Discounts Found ‘Misleading’ by Federal Court

The online retailers ram an online promotion from 27 June to 30 June 2018, which advertised to consumers that the code ‘TAXTIME’ would reduce prices by ten percent. According to the ACCC, the promotion was sent to more than 10 million consumers via SMS and was featured on the Kogan website.

“The Court found that the advertisements conveyed false or misleading representations because Kogan had increased the prices of more than 600 of its products immediately before the promotion,” the ACCC explained in a statement.

Kogan’s 2018 Tax Time promotion – supplied via Australian Competition & Consumer Commission

According to the Federal Court, the prices of Kogan’s promotional products had been ‘increased by at least ten percent’. The Federal Court also found that Kogan had also reduced the prices of the promoted products ‘shortly after the promotion ended, many back to their pre-promotion prices’.

“We brought this case because we were concerned that the advertised price reductions were not genuine savings,” said Rod Simms, ACCC Chair.

“Many consumers who took up the offer on one or more of the 600 or so products in many cases actually paid the same as, or more than, what they would have paid immediately before and after the promotion.

“All businesses must ensure that their advertisements do not mislead consumers about the nature of a promotion and that any promised savings are genuine.”

A hearing on relief, including penalties, will be held at a later date.

Power Retail is dedicated to providing critical and live e-commerce retailer benchmarking data and shopper insights for the online retail industry. Click here to find out more about Power Retail E-Commerce Intelligence or here to sign-up for the free weekly Pulse Newsletter for more essential online retail content.