Price indication of goods and services now being enforced as a measure of consumer protection
Effective January 5, 2023, the Ministerial regulation on the prices of goods and services (Regeling prijsaanduiding goederen en diensten, AB 2023, no. 01) went into effect. The objective of this regulation is to lay down rules concerning the display of prices at which goods or services are offered to the public. An added benefit of this regulation is that it contributes to consumer protection and awareness by ensuring that the selling price is unambiguous, easily identifiable, and clearly legible for all goods and services.
Some main points of interest for the public covered by the regulation are:
1. Anyone who offers goods or services for sale is obliged at the cash register (or another appropriate location) to have a list on which it is clearly visible and legible, the published prices applicable to these goods or services available for inspection by the buyer. If the goods or services fall within a government-established maximum price list, then the highest permissible prices should also be available for inspection by the buyer.
2. The above is also applicable to electronic goods and services. The prices must be published on the electronic platform upon which the goods and services are offered.
3. Anyone who offers goods for sale is obliged to provide these goods with a clearly visible and legible indication of the price. In the case of a stack or group of similar items, a single indication of the price per item may suffice.
4. Anyone who offers services is obliged to show the indication of the price in a recognizable way.
5. The price indication must be in English or Dutch language.
6. The price must be indicated in Dutch Antillean guilders, to which the currency sign (NAf) must be used.
7. A person offering goods for sale or providing services may indicate the price in another currency, provided that the other provisions of this regulation are fulfilled and provided that the foreign
unit of money is clearly stated.
The Inspectorate of TEATT is the entity responsible for the enforcement of this regulation. Questions and complaints regarding this regulation can be submitted to teatt.complaints@sintmaartengov.org.
The public is encouraged to report non-compliance with this regulation to the respective business first and if not resolved forward your complaint to teatt.complaints@sintmaartengov.org with supporting evidence like a photo of the good (including its price) or an invoice of the service rendered by the business.
