Display of prices for products and services
Last update
Summary:
All professionals must make consumers aware of the prices for their products and services in a way that is unequivocal, easily identifiable and legible. The prices must be shown in euros, and all taxes must be included.
Before purchasing a product or service, consumers must be able to find out its price, which is to be displayed:
- in a way that is:
- unequivocal; and
- easily identifiable; and
- legible;
- in euros;
- with VAT and all other applicable taxes included.
All professionals must inform consumers of the price of their products and their services, as well as any digital content and digital services they offer, through:
- tagging; or
- labelling; or
- display; or
- through any other appropriate process.
Unless otherwise stipulated by law or regulation, professionals cannot require consumers to pay an actual price that is higher than the price displayed.
Who is concerned
A professional is any natural or legal person, public or private, who engages in a commercial, industrial, artisanal or professional activity, either in their own right or through other persons or entities acting in their name or on their behalf.
The obligation to display prices applies to all professionals, whether they are:
- selling goods; or
- providing services (with the exception of liberal professions).
Some professionals must include the service charge in the sales price of their products:
- operators of drinking establishments for alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages;
- establishments offering accommodation;
- restaurants;
- tearooms.
A consumer is any natural person who is not engaging in an activity connected to their commercial, industrial, artisanal or professional activity.
How to proceed
Display of prices
The price of the products and services must be displayed in writing:
- in a way that is unequivocal; and
- legible; and
- identifiable; and
- in euros.
Consumers must not be obligated to ask the seller or service provider to tell them the price of a product or service. This means that even if they have received verbal information upon request, that is not sufficient because the professional is required to provide the information in writing.
Apart from these common rules, obligations differ depending on whether the professional is a seller of goods or services.
- Product seller
- Service provider
Display of product prices
Individual display
Professionals must display prices individually to consumers if one of the following features makes a product distinctive:
- type (e.g. a T-shirt versus a button-down shirt); or
- quality (e.g. a silk shirt versus a cotton shirt); or
- packaging (e.g. T-shirts in packs of 2 or single-packed T-shirt); or
- presentation (e.g. 5 shirts on a display or one shirt displayed by itself on a mannequin).
Prices may be displayed collectively if they are for identical products which are displayed in the same area (e.g. a large basket of espadrilles).
Price displays inside and outside the premises
If products are displayed:
- inside the store in plain sight, their price must be clearly visible inside the premises;
- in outdoor showcases or displays, their price must be clearly visible from the outside. Consumers must be able to find out the price of a product without having to enter the store to ask the price.
If products are not displayed in the store in plain sight but consumers can purchase them either inside the store itself or in a room right next to the store, the trader does not need to put a label with the price on each product individually.
The merchant need only display a list of prices in the store that is clearly visible to the public (e.g. sale of screws stored in a room behind the sales counter).
Principle of dual price display
In principle, sellers must display 2 prices:
- the sales price of the product (e.g. price of one steak);
- the price of the product per unit of measurement (e.g. price of steak per kilo). The units of measurement to be used are expressed in:
- kg; or
- l; or
- m; or
- m2; or
- m3.
For certain pre-packaged products, the unit of measurement conveyed to consumers is:
- the net weight; and
- the drained net weight whose price is displayed (e.g. a jar of pickles).
For laundry products, a washing unit for a normal washing machine load can be used as a measuring unit.
This is called dual display of prices.
Mandatory dual price display
Dual price display is mandatory:
- for certain non-food products (French, Pdf, 227 Kb);
- if the same person (natural or legal) operates several stores where one exceeds 400 m2 of sales area.
Exemptions from dual price display
Only the price per unit of measurement must be displayed for products sold in bulk. The final sales price cannot be displayed in advance because these are products that:
- are not pre-packaged; and
- are measured in the consumer's presence (oranges, unpackaged cheese sold at the counter, etc.).
Subject to exceptions stipulated by the regulations in force, only the sales price must be displayed for:
- any product (except loose items) if the sales area does not exceed 400 m2 and if the trader does not operate another sales area larger than 400 m2;
- any product where the sales price is identical to the price per unit of measurement (e.g. a one-litre bottle);
- certain food products (French, Pdf, 159 Kb);
- non-food products, except for certain products (French, Pdf, 227 Kb);
- products sold when providing a service (e.g. shampoo sold in a hairdressing salon);
- any set of different products sold in the same package, where displaying the sales price of the set is sufficient.
All service providers, except for those in the liberal professions, must display to consumers in a clear, legible manner their unit prices including all taxes.
Thus, when a consumer enters a hairdressing salon, restaurant or café, for example, the prices are displayed directly.
On the other hand, an architecture or law firm, both of which belong to the liberal professions, are not required to display their prices.
Certain traders are required to display their prices with service included, such as:
- operators of drinking establishments for alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages;
- accommodation establishments (hotel, boarding house, etc.);
- eating establishments (restaurant, cafeteria, catering service and delicatessen, food trucks, etc.);
- tearooms.
If a final price cannot be set in advance, the professional must disclose to consumers the method used for determining this price. Knowing the factors or criteria used to calculate the total price will enable consumers to check the price once they learn it.
Specific examples include:
- the hourly cost of labour inclusive of all taxes; and
- travel expenses.
For example, an installer will display to consumers their hourly rates inclusive of all taxes for labour, and their travel expenses.
If a professional has facilities available and accessible to the public, prices must be displayed:
- inside; and
- outside the premises.
Consumers must be able to find out the prices from outside the premises for:
- hairdressing salons;
- restaurants;
- cafés;
- driving schools, etc.
If the number or complexity of the services offered by the service provider does not allow them to display their prices legibly for customers, the service provider can indicate them:
- in a catalogue or other brochure that:
- lists the prices of the most common services provided; and
- is available in their offices and can be accessed freely by consumers;
- in a quote they provide to the consumer and that must state the total amount payable, inclusive of all taxes.
Discounts
When it comes to discounts, consumers must see displayed the previous price the professional applied for at least 30 days before offering the discount.
This previous price denotes the lowest price applied by the professional:
- during this period of at least 30 days before the discount was applied; or
- since the professional began marketing the goods, if the goods have been marketed for fewer than 30 days.
If the discount is gradually increased, the previous price denotes the price without a discount before the discount was first applied.
Advertising
The price displayed in an advertisement (advertising leaflet, television, etc.) is part of:
- the sales agreement; or
- the provision of services subsequently concluded.
If a professional demands that consumers pay a price that is different from the one displayed in the advertisement, consumers may assert the rights granted to them under the Consumer Law Code – specifically, to request the termination of the agreement (i.e. retroactive cancellation with repayment of past services).
All advertising referring to the sales price of a product subject to the dual price display requirement must also indicate the price for one unit of measurement, even in stores where the sales area does not exceed 400 m2, or for a street trader.
Who to contact
-
Directorate for Consumer Protection
- Address:
-
271, route d’Arlon
L-1150
Luxembourg
Luxembourg
B.P. 119, L-2011 Luxembourg
- Phone:
- (+352) 247 73 700
- Email address:
- info@mpc.etat.lu
- Website:
- https://mpc.gouvernement.lu/en.html
-
Directorate for Consumer Protection
Passenger complaints
- Address:
- 271, route d’Arlon L-1150 Luxembourg Luxembourg
- Email address:
- passagers@mpc.etat.lu
Related procedures and links
Procedures
Links
Further information
-
Guide for the retailer
on the Luxembourg Government portal
-
Unfair pricing
on Your Europe
-
Pricing and payments
on Your Europe
