Query with the Sale in Halfords

cazbarfeatures

My husband and I saw a bike for him about a week or so before Christmas priced at £209.99.

I looked at the 'sale' on line at Halfords where we originally saw the bike and it has £299.99 crossed out Sale price £209.99.

I sent them an email and they had this to say: The cycle was previously at the higher price between the dates of 11/9/2012 and the 15/10/2012.

We are required to have sold the product at the higher price for 28 consecutive day within our stores.

This criteria has been fulfilled on this occasion, my sincerest apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused to you.

end quote.

How can they call it a sale price when it has been £209.99 for the last 2 months?

I decided to get my hubby Halfords vouchers so he could get a good deal in the 'sale' so can't go anywhere else unfortunately.

thanks

FireWyrm

I dont understand. It is on sale at £209.99...so why didnt you buy it? Or has the price gone back to £299 since you saw the sale?

cazbarfeatures

Thanks for your reply. It's £209.99 at the moment and it was this price just before Christmas too but they are calling it a sale price and the price hasn't changed.

Figtree

As long as it's been at the higher price for at least 28 days within the previous six months of the 'sale' price, then they can call it a sale. Just like every other shop.

So I suppose in theory they could have it on 'sale' for about five months.

(Can anyone provide a reference/authority on this?)

FireWyrm

They only have to have sold the item at the higher price for a certain time as you were advised. I'm not sure of the problem here? Were you expecting further reductions? Either you feel the price is fair or you dont?

cazbarfeatures

Yes I was expecting a further reduction. I just don't see it as fair to cross out £299.99 and put £209.99 making out it's a post Christmas bargain.

The tone in some replies on this forum can be rather rude. May I direct you to the Etiquette Icon?

cutestkids

Hi OP

Rightly or wrongly that is the way the vast majority of sales work in large retailers now, they only have to have the higher price on display for 28 days in a certain percentage of stores within a selected time frame before they can then say it is on sale.

Figtree

I think some of us were just a bit confused by the wording of the question.

It does seem a bit odd that they didn't refer to the bike as being part of a promotional sale when it was originally reduced to £209.99. You might not be getting as much of a bargain as you were hoping for, but then I guess there was no guarantee that that particular bicycle would ever be on a post-christmas 'sale' in any case.

If it's any consolation, you can get 3% cashback through quidco :-/

McKneff

Argos are even worse, they sell stuff in the sale with BIG Letters saying HALF PRICEi SALE ie £59 then in little letters (has previously been on sale £49) now that really is silly.