Lidl’s promotional campaign under review

A recent sales campaign by the discount grocery chain Lidl is being investigated by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) to determine whether or not the company violated promotion rules that are meant to protect the collective rights of customers, a report in Gazeta Prawna on Tuesday explained. The campaign, which was called “Clever and Cheap,” promoted discounted prices on many products, and said that if customers were not satisfied with some of the products, they could be refunded – provided that customers had retained proof-of-purchase receipts. The web-promoted campaign also stated that if there were to be changes in the promotion, customers would be notified seven days in advance. However, after the company ran out of stock and some customers started to abuse the return policy, it ended the campaign on November 8, three weeks before the originally-scheduled end on November 30. A statement from Lidl defended the cancellation, saying that it ended “for the sake of comfort and safety of customers,” adding that there were many cases of “the use against its objectives.” Under the promotion, customers were able to return up to ten items, including fruit and vegetables, if they were not happy with their quality.