Timeliness of availability information in online shops

Does it constitute unfair 'bait advertising' if a product is advertised with a delivery time of a few days although the product is in fact not available? This question was addressed by the Higher Regional Court (OLG) Hamm.

A retailer who offers bicycles in his online shop was sued. For one product, the retailer advertised 'only a few copies in stock, delivery time approx. 2-4 working days'. In fact, the bicycle was no longer available at all at the time of a test order. The last model of the bicycle in question had been sold five days before the test order.

The retailer was initially given a cease-and-desist letter by the plaintiff, as she saw in the retailer's conduct an impermissible 'bait advertising'. The Regional Court (LG) Bochum confirmed this view. The retailer then filed an appeal. He is of the opinion that there is no violation of competition law, since only a single erroneous statement was present. Due to the shortness of the time, an error occurred here.

Court decision on availability information in online retail

The Higher Regional Court (OLG) Hamm granted the claim by judgment of 11.08.2015 – Az. 4 U 69/15 accordingly.

According to this, the information on the availability of a product in an online shop must always be correct and up-to-date; no delays may occur. The court's decision was based on the reasoning that information in an online shop could technically be updated at any time. Therefore, the stated product availability must always correspond to the real circumstances. Even statements such as 'only a few copies left in stock' lead customers to the mistaken impression that the product is still available and merely some urgency is warranted.

Conclusion

Retailers with an online shop must absolutely meet the high requirements for the timeliness of an availability display in order to avoid a cease-and-desist letter from competing retailers.