Shoppers in Australia regularly see an old price shown beside a lower one. One such campaign has now been tested in court. The Federal Court has concluded that the "Down Down" promotions run by the supermarket chain Coles deceived the very shoppers they targeted about the price cuts on offer. The decision, handed down by Justice Michael O'Bryan, has been called a landmark case.

Of the 14 example sale tickets put before the court, Justice O'Bryan found that 13 had delivered no real reduction in price. Timing was the problem. Before advertising those items under a "Down Down" discount, Coles had not been selling them at the higher figure for any sensible length of time. In a case of this kind the maximum penalty could reach A$50 million for each separate breach of consumer law — possibly even more — so the chain may now be liable for several hundred million dollars.

In 2024 the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), Australia's consumer watchdog, announced that it was suing both Coles and Woolworths, the country's two largest supermarket chains. Each chain, the watchdog alleged, had put on hundreds of promotions that an "ordinary customer" might read as a genuine saving, though they were in fact misleading.

By 29 May, Coles and the watchdog must agree between them what penalties should apply and what other orders should follow, possibly including a donation to the charity Foodbank. Customers have also brought a class action of their own against the chain — a single lawsuit on behalf of a large group of shoppers — and this will be dealt with alongside the question of penalties. Should the two sides fail to reach agreement, the matter returns to court. Coles may also lodge an appeal; the company said it was "reviewing the judgement". The parallel case against Woolworths is due to be decided by Justice O'Bryan at some later point.