CONSUMER AFFAIRS ACT (PRICE INDICATION) REGULATIONS (priceindication)

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 378.09

CONSUMER AFFAIRS ACT (PRICE INDICATION)

REGULATIONS

1st October, 2002

LEGAL NOTICE 283 of 2002 as amended by Legal Notice 25 of 2007

and Acts XVI of 2019 and XIII of 2022.

The title of these regulations is the Consumer Affairs Act

(Price Indication) Regulations.

(1) Any reference in these regulations to the "Act" is a

r e f e r e n c e t o t h e C o n s u m e r A ff a i r s A c t a n d , s u b j e c t t o t h e

provisions of subregulation (2), the provisions of article 2 of the

said Act shall apply to these regulations.

(2)

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires

"consumer" means any natural person who buys a product for

purposes that do not fall within the sphere of his commercial or

professional activity;

place of business" means any place from where any trade or

business is carried out including any stall, or online marketplace as

defined in the Consumer Rights Regulations;

"price" means the purchase price, and in all cases, the price

indication must be the final retail selling or unit price, including

VAT and any other taxes or charges.

"products sold in bulk" mean products which are not pre-

packaged and are weighed and measured at the request of the

consumer.

"stall" means any vehicle, compartment, bench, board, trolley, table

or receptacle or a combination thereof placed in any marketplace for

the sale of goods.

(1) Consumers have the right to receive adequate, correct

and unambiguous information regarding the price of goods sold or

offered for sale to them, and to be able to make informed decisions

on the basis of simple comparison.

(2) The provisions of subregulation (1) shall not be directly

enforceable in any court or tribunal, but shall be adhered to in the

interpretation and implementation these regulations.

Any trader who offers goods for sale on a retail basis to

consumers shall display by means of appropriate marking, or by

other methods clearly indicate, the price of the goods so offered.

(1) Any trader shall exhibit conspicuously in his place of

business a sample of every kind, size, type or brand of goods

stocked by him, and each such sample shall bear a label or mark

showing the price at which any goods are being offered for sale.

(2)

Every indication of a price required in terms of these

regulations shall be made and displayed in a manner which is

unambiguous, easily identifiable and clearly legible.

(3) The figure denoting the price on the said label or mark shall

be clearly and boldly printed or otherwise indicated in writing.

(4) Any kind, size, type or brand of goods displayed in the

shop-window, or on the outside of the premises, shall bear the

relative selling price label as required by the preceding

subregulations

Provided that, where more than one item of the same kind,

size, type or brand of the same goods are so displayed, it will be

sufficient for the price to be shown on only one of such items.

(5) In respect of any goods including foodstuffs which are sold

or offered for sale to consumers per unit weight or volume, there

shall be indicated -

(a) both the actual price (being the price for a given

quantity of the good);

(b) and the unit price (being the final price for one

kilogram, one litre, one metre, one square metre, or

one cubic metre of the goods).

(6) Pre-packaged goods, including foodstuffs, sold in pre-

established or variable quantities must show both the selling price

and the unit price.

(7)

Products sold in bulk must show the unit price.

(8) In the case of a pre-packaged solid food product presented

in a liquid medium, the unit price shall refer to the net drained

weight of the product. Where a unit price is also given with

reference to the net weight of the product, it shall be clearly

indicated which unit price relates to net drained weight and which

to net weight.

(9) The indication of any charges for postage, package or

delivery of a good shall be unambiguous, easily identifiable and

clearly legible.

(10) The indication of the price and of the unit price as required

under these regulations shall be in Maltese currency.

(1)

Any announcement of a price reduction shall indicate

the prior price applied by the trader for a determined period of time

prior to the application of the price reduction.

(2)

The prior price means the lowest price applied by the trader

during a period of time not shorter than thirty (30) days prior to the

application of the price reduction

Provided that for goods which are liable to deteriorate or

expire rapidly, the prior price is the one applied immediately before the

Provided further that if the goods have been on the market

for less than thirty (30) days, the prior price means the lowest price

applied by the trader during this period

Provided further that when the price reduction is progressively

increased, the prior price is the price without the price reduction before

the first application of the price reduction.

(1)

The provisions of regulation 5 shall not apply to

(a) goods supplied for the purpose of re-selling;

(b) goods sold in the course of the provision of a service;

(c) sales by auction or sales of works of art or antiques;

(d) an advertisement for such goods, unless the selling

(2) The Director General may, from time to time, by notice

published in the Gazette exempt any additional goods or categories

thereof from any of the provisions of these regulations, which may

include the exemption of categories of goods from the obligation to

display also the unit price.

(3) The Director General may, in particular circumstances

where he is satisfied that adherence thereto would be excessively

onerous, by notice published in the Gazette, exempt small retail

businesses or such other categories of traders as shall be specified,

generally or in respect of one or more goods as may be specified in

the notice, from the obligation to display the unit price in terms of

these regulations, subject to such conditions as he shall deem

appropriate.

Without prejudice to any of the forgoing regulations, the

Director General may, in respect of any goods offered for sale to

consumers, impose any such other additional specific requirements

or conditions as he may deem fit regarding the manner in which

prices and other information are indicated or displayed, including

limitations on the information that may be indicated or displayed,

and the trader concerned shall be obliged to comply accordingly.

Traders shall produce to the Director General or to any

officer duly authorized by him in writing, such information as may

be required by the Director General acting in pursuance of any of

his functions under these regulations, in such form and within such

reasonable time as the Director General may establish.

(1) Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with

any of the provisions of any of these regulations shall be guilty of

an offence.

(2) Proceedings in respect of an offence against these regulations

shall be commenced within one year from the commission of the

offence.

(3) Any person who contravenes any of these regulations shall,

on conviction, be liable

(a) in the case of a first conviction, to a fine of not less than

one hundred and fifty euro (€150) and not exceeding one

thousand and five hundred euro (€1,500);

(b) in the case of a second or subsequent conviction, to a

fine of not less than two hundred euro (€200) and not

exceeding two thousand euro (€2,000)

Provided that the Court, when imposing a fine, shall take

into account the following non-exhaustive and indicative criteria

(i)

the nature, gravity, scale and duration of the

infringement;

(ii) any action taken by the trader to mitigate or

remedy the damage suffered by consumers;

(iii) any previous infringements by the trader;

(iv) the financial benefits gained or losses avoided

by the trader due to the infringement, if the

relevant data are available;

(v) penalties imposed on the trader for the same

infringement in other Member States in cross-

border cases where information about such

penalties is available through the mechanism

established by the Consumer Protection Co-

operation Regulation as defined in article 2 of

the Act;

(vi) any other aggravating or mitigating factors

applicable to the circumstances of the case

Provided further that with regard to any convictions, the

Court shall order the publication in one or more daily newspapers

of the judgement, or a statement or summary thereof, passed on the

offender

Provided further that with regard to any convictions, the

Director General shall also publish on the website of the Authority

the judgement delivered by the Court, or a statement or summary

thereof, passed on the offender.

Every trader shall take all necessary steps to ensure full

compliance with these regulations; and even where any

contravention of or non-compliance with any regulation may be

attributed to any person in the employment of such trader, or in the

exercise of any act or function authorized or permitted by the

trader, proceedings shall also be taken against such trader.