Poland’s antitrust watchdog, the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK), has fined Amazon over PLN 31 million (EUR 7.19 million) for a number of offenses, including misleading consumers.
UOKiK explained that the American retail giant had provided false information on the availability and delivery dates of products. The decision is not final, and the company may appeal.
“The use of sales platforms is becoming more and more popular among consumers,” Tomasz Chrostny, the UOKiK president, said. “They choose shopping on platforms because, on the one hand, it allows access to many different offers in one place, and on the other, they trust the providers of known platforms.
“The average consumer has the right to assume that the offered entrepreneurs’ purchase options, availability, and delivery times are not misleading.”
He added that consumers should not have to take additional steps to check the credibility of the offer and the information displayed.
“In the decision issued against Amazon, we questioned the misleading of consumers, including practices classified as so-called dark patterns, such as, for example, putting pressure on consumers by showing a clock counting down,” he said.
In many cases, customers who also ordered and paid on the Amazon.pl platform failed to get the product.
“This is confirmed by evidence from consumers as well as complaints submitted to the company. For example, it was established in the course of the proceedings that the company repeatedly canceled orders placed for popular e-books,” the anti-monopoly agency stated.
Chrostny found that Amazon EU SARL, the company’s official name in Europe, had violated the collective interests of consumers.
Along with paying the fine, the American retail titan must publish the ruling on its website and social media.
“The use of sales platforms is becoming more and more popular among consumers,” Tomasz Chrostny, the UOKiK president, said. “They choose shopping on platforms because, on the one hand, it allows access to many different offers in one place, and on the other, they trust the providers of known platforms.
“The average consumer has the right to assume that the offered entrepreneurs’ purchase options, availability, and delivery times are not misleading.”
He added that consumers should not have to take additional steps to check the credibility of the offer and the information displayed.
“In the decision issued against Amazon, we questioned the misleading of consumers, including practices classified as so-called dark patterns, such as, for example, putting pressure on consumers by showing a clock counting down,” he said.
In many cases, customers who also ordered and paid on the Amazon.pl platform failed to get the product.
“This is confirmed by evidence from consumers as well as complaints submitted to the company. For example, it was established in the course of the proceedings that the company repeatedly canceled orders placed for popular e-books,” the anti-monopoly agency stated.
Chrostny found that Amazon EU SARL, the company’s official name in Europe, had violated the collective interests of consumers.
Along with paying the fine, the American retail titan must publish the ruling on its website and social media.
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