News Brief

(IsraelNN.com) The Knesset passed Thursday on its first reading a law that would prevent retailers from offering a small number of sale items to a large number of customers — effectively running a “bait and switch” scheme, where customers who come in for a product that sold out hours before are ferried by clerks to other, often more expensive products.

According to the law, authored by MKs Gilad Erdan (Likud) and Ronit Tirosh (Kadima), stores that advertise products on sale would have to list the number of items available at the sale price, instead of the usual “while supplies last.”

According to Erdan, “the purpose of this law is to prevent the absurd situation where consumers are attracted to stores by giant ads, only to find that the store has run out — leaving them with the choice of giving up on their purchase or buying an alternative, more expensive item. This law will increase competition and help prevent fraud,” he said. Tirosh added that the law would help develop “a culture where the consumer is aware of all their rights and can defend themselves against fraud.”