Why you should resist overstating offers in sweden

With Black Friday and the holiday season fast approaching, consumers are looking forward to all kinds of offers and discounted products.

For retailers, this means that certain conditions must be fulfilled to call something a discount according to the Swedish Marketing Law.

The requirements are that:

1. The product/service must be something that you normally offer as part of your ordinary range of products and services;
2. The sale can only take place during a limited period; and
3. The discounted price must be significantly lower (assessed on a case-by-case basis) than the company’s normal price for comparable products/services.

In addition to the above requirements, new rules came into force on 1 September 2022. The rules are a result of the EU directive on consumer protection requiring companies to include the previous price during reductions. The previous price shall be the lowest price offered by the company during a period of thirty days prior to the reduction.

This is why it is incredibly important that offers are not overstated, and the latest rules are followed. The Swedish Consumer Agency is known to conduct random checks in connection with Black Friday promotions, and savvy consumers are more than willing to turn to social media to call out retailers.

You and your company thus risk both legal consequences as well as ill will from the public domain.

If you have any questions on how to ensure that your marketing complies with applicable regulations in Sweden or you want to raise issues of non-compliance from your competitors, please reach out to your usual contact at AWA, or e-mail the author of this article: sara.soderling@awa.com.

Similar Guidelines affecting marketing and promotions in Denmark came into force earlier this year – click here for more information.

Sara Söderling
Attorney at Law, European Trademark and Design Attorney at AWA
+46 40 643 41 59
sara.soderling@awa.com