Nearly half of the 78 traders investigated were issued with substantiation notices by fair trading officers, asking them to back up their discount claims. About 230 items labelled with "was/now" comparisons were checked. "Traders were identified based on complaints data, as well as a co-ordinated internet scan to identify promotions on websites targeting Australian consumers," said NSW Fair Trading Minister Matthew Mason-Cox. "Businesses visited included furniture retailers, supermarkets, department stores, jewellers and other specialist retailers." One retailer was caught deceptively claiming a Canon inkjet printer "was $59, now $39". The printer was never sold at $59 because of a late delivery, rendering the "was/now" claim false, the minister said.

"Canon doesn't control market pricing." In NSW, fair trading officers investigated 30 businesses, checked 150 discounted items and issued 13 substantiation notices. Six traders could validate their claims, six traders are still being investigated and one trader has received an "education" letter, reminding them of their obligations. This month, the Pharmacy Guild and National Pharmacies asked the ACCC to investigate Chemist Warehouse as a "matter of urgency", saying the retailer was misleading customers with "normal price" and "you saved" claims on receipts.

They said a "normal price" did not exist for pharmacist-only medicine as most therapeutic goods don't have recommended retail prices. Chemist Warehouse denied any wrongdoing. Consumer advocacy group Choice said the Chemist Warehouse case showed price "trickery" was widespread among retailers. "The trick is not to fall for glossy price promotions. What you've got to do is your homework, shopping around and comparing prices at multiple retailers," said Choice spokesman Tom Godfrey. "Don't think they'll do the right thing by you." Last year, jewellery maker Zamel was found guilty and penalised $250,000 in the Federal Court for misleading customers about its was/now price claims. Zamel, through various promotional materials, falsely declared "was $275, now $149" for some jewellery pieces, when they were never sold at the original price.

Consumer law breaches attract penalties of up to $1.1 million.