27/6/25 | Read time: 2 min
End of financial year sales are everywhere and so are the massive discount claims, ‘60% off everything!’, ‘storewide deals!’ ‘sitewide discounts!’. You’ve probably seen them in your inbox or while filling your online cart at your favourite activewear store, but despite how sweeping these discounts sound, not everything is always on sale – which is the problem. In fact, the ACCC is cracking down on businesses that make these kinds of claims without clearly disclosing the fine print.
Three big-name retailers, Michael Hill, MyHouse, and Hairhouse were each recently hit with $19,800 penalties for advertising sitewide or storewide discounts that didn’t actually apply across the board.
What looked like huge savings ended up being a bit misleading. A number of products were excluded from the offers, even though the advertising gave the impression everything was included.
Here’s what happened:
| Retailer | Promotional claim | ACCC’s concern |
| Michael Hill | ‘Member event – 25% off sitewide’ | At least 17 products weren’t included in the discount. |
| MyHouse | ‘Up to 60% off sitewide + extra 20%’ | The extra 20% discount was not applied sitewide, only to selected products. |
| Hairhouse | ‘Save 20–50% sitewide’ | Over 25% of products were not discounted, despite the ‘sitewide’ claim. |
The ACCC took the view that consumers were likely to be misled by these kinds of blanket statements, particularly where exclusions weren’t made clear.
Under the Australian Consumer Law, advertising must not be misleading or deceptive, or likely to mislead. That includes how you talk about prices, sales, and what a discount really covers.
When businesses use phrases like ‘sitewide’ or ‘everything must go’, they’re essentially saying the offer applies across the board. If that’s not the case, and exclusions apply, it needs to be made obvious and not hidden in fine print.
As the ACCC put it:
’Businesses must not advertise discounts that appear to apply across an entire range or site if in fact the offer excludes significant numbers of products.’
With EOFY in full swing, the ACCC has flagged that it will continue to keep a close eye on sales campaigns and step in where needed.
EOFY is a great time to connect with customers, but misleading promotional language can lead to significant consequences.
If you’re planning a sale or want to check your advertising meets legal requirements, we can help you review your campaign materials, spot potential risks and keep things compliant without killing the creative. Reach out if you need assistance.