Dell’s Australian division has been hit with a $10 million AUD (around $6.49 million) penalty after being found guilty of providing “deceptive and incorrect discount claims on its website for supplementary computer monitors,” as disclosed by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) today. It was discovered that Dell Australia had misrepresented prices for 5,300 monitors.
Earlier coverage by Ars Technica highlighted that the ACCC initiated legal action against Dell Australia last November. By June, the Australian Federal Court ascertained that Dell Australia misled customers into thinking they would get monitors at a reduced rate when bought as supplementary items.
The deceptive practice involved showing a reduced price alongside a higher crossed-out price for Dell monitors on their website. This led buyers to believe that they would be getting the monitor at a special discount when added to their purchase. However, the slashed prices were not the regular rates. Astonishingly, the “discounted” rate was sometimes even more than the standard price.
“Surprisingly, consumers ended up paying more for the supposedly ‘discounted’ add-on monitor than if it had been bought separately,” ACCC’s Liza Carver mentioned in a June statement.
Promotional phrases like “Includes x% off,” “Total Savings” with an amount, and “Special price for popular accessories with this product,” were used on Dell Australia’s site, as observed by the ACCC.
Today’s ACCC disclosure also stated that Dell Australia confessed to exaggerating the “discounts offered” since the monitors “weren’t typically sold at the crossed-out prices.” Dell Australia also admitted to violating the Australian Consumer Law.
Due to these misleading tactics, consumers spent more than $2 million AUD (approximately $1.3 million) on these monitors between August 2019 and December 2021, the ACCC stated.
ACCC’s Carver emphasized the importance of accurate pricing for consumers, saying, “We pursued Dell Australia as accurate price information is crucial for consumers making purchasing decisions.”
The Federal Court of Australia has mandated Dell Australia to offer either full or partial refunds to affected customers. According to the ACCC, Dell has begun the refund process.
A representative from Dell informed Ars Technica that Dell is compensating customers with interest and is “implementing measures to enhance our pricing strategies to avoid similar issues in the future.” Although Dell did not disclose specific measures, an “independent compliance expert” was mandated by the Federal Court in June.
The Dell representative added, “We are relieved to put this behind and are eager to focus on our Australian customers. As previously acknowledged in November 2022, a glitch in Dell’s pricing system led to incorrect pricing details on certain monitors.”
Sadly, misleading pricing tactics like these are not rare among tech retailers. There are frequent instances of products being marketed with “discounted” prices before their official release. It’s a common sight to find slashed prices online, which might be outdated.
While Dell Australia aims to offer clearer deals in the future, consumers are advised to cross-check prices using tools like PCPartPicker or The Camelizer to ensure they’re getting the best deals.