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In an ordinary retail shop, what is the legal effect of displaying goods with price tags?

An ordinary priced display invites customers to make offers. The customer makes an offer by presenting the goods for purchase and the shopkeeper can accept or decline it.…

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In an ordinary retail shop, what is the legal effect of displaying goods with price tags?

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Correct answer C

An ordinary priced display invites customers to make offers. The customer makes an offer by presenting the goods for purchase and the shopkeeper can accept or decline it. The English Court of Appeal illustrated that distinction in Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v. Boots Cash Chemists. It accords with the distinction between proposal and acceptance in section 2 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872.

Option feedback

Option A

Incorrect. Displaying goods with price tags does not constitute a binding offer (proposal) under Section 2(a) of the Indian Contract Act, 1872; rather, the customer makes the offer at the cash desk.

Option B

Incorrect. A counter-offer is a rejection of an original offer coupled with a new proposal on modified terms; a shop display precedes any offer.

Option C

Correct. Displaying goods in a shop or showroom with price tags is an invitation to offer (invitation to treat), inviting customers to make an offer to buy (Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v. Boots Cash Chemists (Southern) Ltd.).

Option D

The display serves a specific transactional purpose. It invites customers to make offers to purchase.

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