Unfair commercial practices

The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive ensures that consumers are not misled or exposed to aggressive marketing and that any claim made by traders in the EU is clear, accurate and substantiated. It seeks to enable consumers to make informed and meaningful choices.

The Directive also aims to ensure, promote and protect fair competition in the area of commercial practices.

The Price Indication Directive obliges traders to indicate the selling price and the price per unit of measurement (e.g. per 100 grams or per item) on the products which they offer to consumers.

This price information must be:

• unambiguous;
• clearly legible;
• easily identifiable.

If advertising mentions the selling price it must also indicate the unit price. For products sold in bulk, only the unit price must be indicated.

However, for some small retail businesses and for certain forms of itinerant trade, the obligation to indicate the unit price may be an excessive burden.

In such cases the national authorities may stipulate that the obligation to indicate the unit price of products, other than those sold in bulk, shall not apply for a transitional period.