Do online retailers HAVE to sell for advertised price?

[TheThaiger]

I've noticed quite a discrepancy between the prices of the same model cues across different online retailers. I've contacted a few of them and have been told the model I'm after is wrongly priced on the website, and is actually more than advertised - their website is out of date. Here in the UK sellers are allowed to charge what they like, so advertised prices don't matter if you have a retailer that digs his heels in; if he doesn't want to sell it for the advertised price, he doesn't have to by consumer law. Is it the same in the US?

Allied to this, some of these retailers have online payment systems, where you can pay by credit card or PayPal - what happens if you pay for a cue at the (wrongly) advertised price - are they duty bound to deliver it at the price you ordered it for, or can they refuse your order? Afterall, you've bought it in good faith at the price offered.
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How do online cue sellers operate generally? I notice that lots use the same payments' software, same free gifts, offer the same discounts etc - am I right in thinking many of the different sites are just portals that process the order on behalf of the manufacturers, and the retailers never actually handle the goods themselves? Some will offer very precise weight changes and tip combinations etc, whereas others will offer very little in terms of available modifications. But does the seller usually physically send out the cue to the customer?

 

[sixpack]

I've noticed quite a discrepancy between the prices of the same model cues across different online retailers. I've contacted a few of them and have been told the model I'm after is wrongly priced on the website, and is actually more than advertised - their website is out of date. Here in the UK sellers are allowed to charge what they like, so advertised prices don't matter if you have a retailer that digs his heels in; if he doesn't want to sell it for the advertised price, he doesn't have to by consumer law. Is it the same in the US?

Allied to this, some of these retailers have online payment systems, where you can pay by credit card or PayPal - what happens if you pay for a cue at the (wrongly) advertised price - are they duty bound to deliver it at the price you ordered it for, or can they refuse your order? Afterall, you've bought it in good faith at the price offered.
_________________________

How do online cue sellers operate generally? I notice that lots use the same payments' software, same free gifts, offer the same discounts etc - am I right in thinking many of the different sites are just portals that process the order on behalf of the manufacturers, and the retailers never actually handle the goods themselves? Some will offer very precise weight changes and tip combinations etc, whereas others will offer very little in terms of available modifications. But does the seller usually physically send out the cue to the customer?

I am not a lawyer and I'm sure some will chime in.

In contract law, there has to be an offer, acceptance and consideration for there to be a binding contract. In an online transaction, they offer a product at a price, you accept and offer payment (consideration) so IMO they are bound legally to fulfill their side of the contract.

In cases of typos or errors they might have an out. If this is SOP for them they are probably liable to a lawsuit.

All that being said, if they do not fulfill their side of the contract, you are entitled to your money back. So in practice they are probably legally okay to say "sorry, I can't fulfill that price so here's your money back."

You could try and force specific performance (i.e. make them send you the cue) but the time and hassle to do that would not be worth anywhere close to the price savings you are looking to score.

Unfortunately, there are some online retailers who offer insanely low prices on things and then try to get you to purchase other, higher priced extras. If you don't agree to buy the extras, they will tell you that your original item has been backordered and then will never send it to you, keeping your money until you actually demand it back. (If even then)

~rc

 

[mikefeiman]

I'll see if I can answer some of your questions. With regards to typos, most ecommerce companies will put a disclaimer in their T&C or customer service page that they are not liable for typos and such.

As for minimum advertised pricing, it varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. Most have MAP policies that state you can only sell their product for 20% off list. Predator and McDermott have a 15% off MAP policy. As dealers, if we do not stick to the policy, we can be cut off by the manufacturer, so all the major players seem to play by the rules. If someone is under MAP, more often than not it is simply an oversight that gets corrected fairly quickly.

As for stock status, it varies from retailer to retailer. Some have all their product on hand, some have a portion on hand and dropship the rest, others dropship 100% of the product they sell. Your best bet is to simply call the company and ask them if they have the product on hand or if they're shipping from the manufacturer.

Hope this helps!

 

[poolcuewarehous]

Pool Cue Warehouse

Easy Answer to your ? no we can sell it for what ever we want, we just cant advertise it for less than the MAP=Manufacturer Allowed Pricing! But if it is a typo generally there is a clause that says they are not liable for typo's!

 

[cheapcues.com]

I can't speak for other dealers but we stock as much of the product here as we can, so we are able to turn down shafts, retip, etc. and ship in a timely fashion. I know there are a lot of web sites out there that are strictly drop-ship- there are lots of different ways to run a business. In regards to the price issue, minimum advertised price polices are in place and have been for years, but a few years ago a big supreme court ruling made it possible for manufacturers to legally impose a minimum SELLING price policy if they so choose. Some have done this but most are still minimum advertised price policies.

-Mike

 

[Brian in VA]

As a student of retail for over 30 years, I find the growth of internet commerce over the last 10 or so to be fascinating. Some of the web merchants are working their way through the skeevy practices of traditional retailers from 30 or 40 years ago until customers wise up and stop buying from them. (Bait and switch, low ball pricing with automatic add-ons was practiced by a major retailer back in the 1960s and they are still in business! Their life has been well spent! :wink

In the end, the only force consumers have against unscrupulous etailers is by voting with the click of a mouse to go somewhere else.

MAP, minimum advertised pricing is practiced in nearly every retailing vertical these days from golf clubs to electronics to pool equipment. Remember that no manufacturer can mandate what price their product will be sold for unless it's mandated for everyone and spelled out very clearly in the vendor agreements with specific consequences for non-compliance. (Bose Loudspeakers are one such manufacturer by the way. You won't get a price break from an authorized retailer unless everyone else that sells them has it too.)

There has been some discussion between traditional retailers and vendors that their websites are not advertising portals and, as such, are not governed by the MAP rules. It will be interesting to see how that works out for them. It's difficult for a web only retailer to put any leverage against this when that's their only source to sell. The traditional retailer has stores in which to still sell product. My guess is that until someone goes the lawsuit route, we're probably stuck with what we currently have.

Everything else that's been discussed on this thread is dead on. It's sites like AZB that enable consumers to talk about good and bad retailers and help all of us. Keep up the good work!

Brian in VA