Consumer law in post-accession Malta : a critical review of price control regulation and the Supplies and Services Act 1947

Abstract

In the sale of goods, price is extremely important. Price is what the buyer obliges himself to pay. It constitutes his single major obligation under the law of sale. And receiving the price is usually the main objective of the vendor. The price is so essential to every contract of sale that in the absence of an express clear mutual agreement on the price, a contract of sale cannot come in to existence. It is therefore no surprise that the law has over the years given very keen attention to price and has made various efforts, using different techniques, to try to ensure that a buyer gets a fair deal for the price he has paid. Different legal provisions have promoted price transparency and have created safeguards against over-pricing and misleading prices. Consumers cannot fail to be interested in legal controls over the price of goods offered for sale to them. The obligation to show the correct and final price to consumers prevents surprises. Mandatory price transparency facilitates the detection and punishment of over-charging, applying misleading prices and the promotion of false sales. A successful price control framework requires and relies on mandatory price indications rules. Over-pricing is of course the underlying abuse at the heart of price-fixing cartels, black-market activities and hoarding at times when supplies are scarce usually in the event of an emergency. Such acts have now been further prohibited particularly through recent competition legislation?