The ministry requires full compliance with the “Regulation on Commercial Advertising and Unfair Commercial Practices” as discounted sales have a directional effect on consumers.
The research found that overlapping misleading final discount calculations such as “50 percent + 20 percent + 10 percent” caused consumer confusion.
Although the main text of the advertisement stated that all products were discounted, it was found that many products were excluded from scope with footnotes and the terms and conditions of the promotion were presented in fonts that were too small and illegible. Violations highlighted included the lack of start and end dates for discounted sales and the unrealistically high reference price for loyalty card discounts.
Depending on the media, the penalties multiply
Under Consumer Protection Law No. 6502, advertisers, advertising agencies and media organizations that violate the legislation are subject to sanctions. The Advertising Authority has the power to stop advertising, correct it in the same way or impose administrative penalties, depending on the nature of the violation.
Administrative penalties can start from 99,339 lira and go up to 39 million 916,524 lira, depending on the medium in which the advertisement is published. When determining the amount of the penalty, the Chamber takes into account the amount of unjustified advantage obtained, the damage caused to the consumer and the fault of the perpetrator.
“Warn first, punish later” strategy
The Ministry of Commerce informed relevant professional associations and their members to prevent consumers from suffering and to spare companies from severe penalties.
Ministry experts emphasized that advertising should be fully compliant with the legislation. It was noted that all business practices that lead to speculative price movements and violate the principle of honesty will be carefully followed.
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