Poles have started their holiday shopping. Numerous promotional campaigns by stores encourage increased spending but can also lull consumers’ vigilance, potentially resulting in financial losses. The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) also warns against careless use of deferred payments, which could lead to excessive debt. This is highlighted in a new campaign by the office.
Mastercard Economics Institute estimates that Christmas spending will increase across Europe by 2.9% YoY. A particular significant increase is forecasted for Poland, which with a result of 6.4%, is the second-highest in European countries.
“During the holiday season, many entrepreneurs tempt us, offering unique gift ideas, great promotions. Benefits are even more pronounced offering also the possibility of deferred payment for purchases. On one hand, this is clearly beneficial for the consumer, as they can buy their desired gifts at the moment, even without having the financial means,” says to Newseria agency Daniel Mańkowski, deputy chairman of UOKiK.
Deferred payments, known as ‘buy now, pay later’, mean that sellers offer customers the option of paying for purchases later (usually after 30 or 45 days), and also with the option of instalment payments. Until recently, deferred payments were a financial novelty. Today, it is slowly becoming a standard, not only in e-commerce stores. According to last year’s study by the Credit Information Bureau, 15% of online shoppers used this payment method, and 40% intended to do so. The main reason for choosing this option is simply the possibility of postponing payment in time (51%). Some customers want a wider choice, but the percentage of those who lack money at the time of purchase is increasing (27%).
“We have to bear in mind, that while in the so-called shopping fever, we might not be aware of how much money we’ve really spent, and at some point, these funds will have to be returned. This may result in having to pay a rather large sum at once, for which we were not prepared,” reminds Daniel Mańkowski.
At the end of November, the UOKiK started a campaign “Check if you can afford it!”, warning against the trap of consumption.
According to the report PayPo “Deferred payments in Poland 2023”, this payment method, according to half of its users, allows them to manage their domestic budget wisely. Nearly 60% know immediately whether they will pay off the order within 30 days or spread the transaction into instalments. On the other hand, less than half of people set a maximum limit of expenses they can incur using this payment method.
“The moment we exceed the repayment deadline for our debts, first, we may incur additional costs as the operator of this service may charge us additional fees. Secondly, we may also fall into a debt recovery, sometimes enforcement proceedings. Of course, our creditworthiness and ability to contract further obligations in the future will suffer,” explains UOKiK’s Deputy Chairman.
Poles are also very susceptible to all kinds of promotions. Revolut Money Report indicates that for every third customer, Black Friday is a chance for great shopping deals and they admit that they usually find such promotions. Nearly 40% of respondents use discounts on items they regularly buy, a similar percentage thanks to discounts reaches for more expensive products. What’s troubling is that over 13% of Poles make purchases out of fear that the opportunity won’t repeat (the FOMO effect). This is the highest percentage in Europe, where the average was 2.4%. Meanwhile, 8% of customers are ready to use a credit card or loan to score a good deal.
“Let’s not get carried away by this shopping fever, let’s consider what and how much we need. Let’s prepare a list in advance, our financial capacity, the budget we can devote to these expenses and try to stick to it. Let’s compare products and prices, as it may turn out that at a given moment, this product is not the cheapest,” emphasizes Daniel Mańkowski.
As of 2023, the Omnibus Directive applies, according to which an entrepreneur is obliged to inform the promotional price about the lowest price that was valid within at least the last 30 days. This is to protect consumers against false promotions involving a short-term raising of the price of a given product, only to later announce a promotion.
“This is extremely important because then the customer, buying a particular product, knows whether they are actually taking advantage of a promotion and saving, they also know to what extent, whether it’s a saving of 5%, 10, or perhaps 30%,” says Katarzyna Ciechanowska-Ciosk, Head of Amazon.pl.
When faced with particularly attractive offers, a red light should go off for consumers. Discounts of several tens of percent can indicate an attempt at fraud.
“Let’s dedicate a moment to verifying whether it is indeed an honest seller with a history. Let’s try to establish their actual headquarters, bank account number, contact details so that it doesn’t turn out that after the purchase, we’re dealing with a businessman who will disappear in cyberspace,” says UOKiK’s deputy chairman.
“Let’s shop in safe places, under safe addresses. As Amazon.pl, we proactively work to catch attempts to set up accounts by fraudsters who will be offering non-original, counterfeit products. This is very important, as we know, that at the border with the European Union, 15% of products that are caught as counterfeits are toys and cosmetic products,” reminds Katarzyna Ciechanowska-Ciosk.
In 2023, Amazon stopped 700k attempts to set up accounts by counterfeiters, while two years earlier it was 2.5 million, and three years earlier – 6 million.
“One could say that, on one hand, we are very efficient, but on the other hand, these crooks have moved somewhere else,” points out the Head of Amazon.pl.
The “Consumer in the World of New Digital Opportunities” conference, organised by the Lewiatan Confederation, was an opportunity to discuss consumer safety, their purchases, and payments. Although much has improved in recent years, including legal regulations, often clients making purchases online remain defenseless. Research presented at the conference shows that only 22% of Poles know their consumer rights, and 65% are unable to identify in the agreement provisions which prove that it is valid.
