THE NATIONAL Consumer Agency has advised shoppers to shun retailers who charge “outrageous” mark-ups on goods originally priced in sterling.
NCA chief executive Ann Fitzgerald said consumers were being ripped off by some retailers who were imposing large mark-ups on imported goods, particularly in the clothing sector.
She described as outrageous the practice of blacking out the sterling price on goods to hide the differential with the euro price.
“The fact is that if you go into a store and see an outrageous mark-up and you still buy the item, you’re encouraging them to do this. If you as a consumer keep giving them custom, they will keep charging extra, and there is no incentive for them to change.”
Retailers often argue there is a time-lag between currency fluctuations and price changes in the shop because existing stock has been purchased at the earlier price. However, Ms Fitzgerald said there were “no excuses” for the mark-ups currently seen in some shops because they had been in place longer than any time-lag would explain.
In food retailing, customers had shown a willingness to shop around in search of value, she pointed out, but clothing, which wasn’t seen as being as much of a necessity, hadn’t attracted the same type of behaviour.
Retailers have cited higher transport, VAT, insurance and security costs in Ireland as reasons for the price differential.
Ms Fitzgerald acknowledged that, as the industry claimed, it costs more to do business in the Republic. The question, she said, was “how much more?”
She expressed the hope that a Forfás report to be published soon would shed more light on the issue.
Last summer, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Mary Coughlan called in retail representatives over their alleged failure to pass on falls in the value of sterling to consumers.
