The Good Guys $8700 Discount on Samsung NEO QLED TVs leaves customers wishing

I knew from the get-go it had to be a mistake, but that doesn’t mean that I’m not entitled to the deal.

That’s how I see the stuff up at The Good Guys today, which has surely left some poor employing crying in the corner in the fetal position.

This morning, just before 8am, the intrepid team of EFTM Man Cave moderators were made aware of a cracking deal on Samsung NEO QLED TVs at The Good Guys.

For context, this is the TV that took out our Best Award just last year – it’s stunning, and to top it off, the deals were on the 8K version.

New TVs for 2022 are due soon, so we do expect to see deals to clear stock, but was this one too good to be true?

Of course, but does that mean it’s right? Hell no.

I got the credit card (actually PayPal) out and ordered one pronto. An 85 Inch Samsung NEO QLED TV for $1,285 plus delivery. At JB HiFi that’s a $9,995 TV.

Boom, order placed.

Order Confirmed.

There it is, In full colour in my email.

And then, nearly four hours later, the joy came crashing down.

Now, at the time of writing, I’m still yet to receive any instruction in my inbox. Poor form Good Guys.

UPDATE: Just got an email:

$100 voucher for missing out on the deal of a lifetime?

So, given I knew it had to have been an error, but wondered about those who legitimately were shopping for a TV this morning. Where do we stand?

On the website, these TVs were in fact listed as “ADVERTISED” which made me think – well, maybe it’s some awesome snap deal. Limited quantity or something.

So I asked the NSW Department of Customer service where we stand.

A spokesperson for NSW Fair Trading told EFTM “Retailers can refuse to accept orders made online or to cancel orders in accordance with their terms and conditions, as long as the terms and conditions do not contravene Australian Consumer Law or other laws. 

“Consumers may seek independent legal advice on rights and obligations regarding any contractual disputes.”

And yes, if you go back and search for their T&C’s which no buyer in the history of online shopping has ever read – it says this:

We have some of the best consumer laws in the world. They offer ongoing protection for the buyer way past any warranty, and they hold businesses to account.

But in reality, this really isn’t fair.

In this case – it’s clearly and error – but in reality, it shows that a retailer could simply cancel a bunch of orders at their own whim – what’s the point of advertising a price if you can’t be held to the price?

Do I think The Good Guys should be forced to deliver all these orders? Probably not.

Would it teach them a valuable – in fact very costly lesson about why prices should be checked and double checked all the time? Hell yes.

Would it be fascinating if all the “buyers” in this instance took out a class action in defence of our rights to get a product at the advertised price – shit yeah. I wonder.

Regardless, it’s another great reminder that if it looks too good to be true – it most probably is.