France fines Boohoo €2.3 million over deceptive discounts on website

French authorities have imposed a €2.3 million fine on the British fast-fashion giant Boohoo for misleading consumers with fake discounts on its website. The nation's consumer protection agency, the DGCCRF, stated that the retailer significantly exaggerated the savings offered, creating a false impression of value for shoppers.

An investigation by the DGCCRF revealed that a substantial portion of Boohoo's promotions were not legitimate price reductions. According to the watchdog's findings, 40% of the analyzed offers were not real discounts, while 7% provided lower savings than advertised. Alarmingly, 48% of the promotions actually represented a price increase, effectively deceiving customers into believing they were getting a deal.

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Boohoo exaggerated the discounts it was offering, giving shoppers a false impression of the savings they were making.

Beyond the issue of deceptive pricing, Boohoo also stands accused of violating French product labeling rules. The regulator reported that the company used terms like "leather" or "suede" to market products made from synthetic materials. This practice misleads consumers about the composition of the goods they are purchasing.

This action against Boohoo is part of a broader crackdown by the French government on online fast-fashion businesses. Lawmakers recently passed an anti-fast-fashion law aimed at penalizing companies selling what they term "disposable" clothing. The government has particularly focused its attention on Chinese platforms like Shein and Temu.

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Boohoo also used terms like 'leather' or 'suede' to sell synthetic products, going against French rules on product labelling.