New rules which have just come into action mean supermarket shoppers should be more confident of prices (Image: blue sky in my pocket via Getty Images)
New legislation has come into effect affecting shoppers at the UK’s major supermarkets, including Tesco, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Aldi, Waitrose and Lidl. Under the new rules, prices must be displayed clearly across all products, with standardised measurements designed to eliminate confusion and enable customers to compare costs and better understand savings schemes.
The reforms have expanded unit pricing requirements to other products including cereals, pasta, dried fruits, detergents, cleaning products and cosmetics, and metric measurements need to be standardised – per kilo, litre, metre – regardless of product size.
Practical exemptions apply to mixed product packages, such as gift hampers containing items ordinarily sold by differing measures, while deposit amounts must be excluded from the displayed selling price.
Where retailers offer different prices for the same product, such as loyalty card discounts, they must clearly display both the standard price and the discounted price, with conditions for obtaining the lower price shown prominently near the product.
The overhaul is intended to boost pricing transparency and make comparison shopping more straightforward, requiring retailers to review their pricing systems, provide staff training, and potentially redesign both physical and digital price displays. Alexa Lamont, Managing Associate, Knowledge Lawyer said: “The reforms are designed to enhance transparency and make it easier for shoppers to compare products across a wider range of goods. The additional preparation time will allow retailers to adapt their systems and processes to meet the new requirements when they come into effect.”
“One of the most substantial changes involves expanding the range of products that must display unit pricing alongside their selling price. The new rules will require unit pricing for additional categories of packaged goods, including cereals, pasta, dried fruits, detergents and cosmetics. This expansion means consumers will have better tools to compare value across a much wider range of everyday products. “
Under the new regulations, when metric unit prices are displayed, they must be shown using standard measurements: price per kilogram, litre, metre, square metre, or cubic metre, as appropriate. This requirement applies regardless of the product’s actual size.
The reforms introduce stricter standards for how prices must be presented:
- Legibility and font requirements: Prices must be clearly legible using fonts that are clear and of reasonable size.
- Delivery charges: Any delivery charges must be unambiguous, easily identifiable, and clearly legible..”
Mixed product packages are subject to exemptions, acknowledging the complexity of certain retail offerings. Under the new regulations, retailers will not be required to display a unit price for packages containing different items sold together, where some products are typically sold by weight, such as cheese, others by volume, such as wine, or at varying individual prices when purchased separately.
Ms Lamont added: “There are also reforms as to how retailers handle different pricing tiers, particularly loyalty card schemes. When retailers offer different prices for the same product – such as a standard price and a discounted price for loyalty card members- they must:
- Clearly display both prices
- Explain the conditions required to obtain the lower price
- Show these conditions prominently near the product
- Apply this requirement to both selling prices and unit prices where applicable
For example, if a retailer offers a product for £5 normally, but £4 with a loyalty card, both prices must be clearly shown alongside an explanation of the loyalty card requirement, positioned where customers can easily see it when considering the purchase