ABA Family Legal Guide

Contracts and Consumer Law

Special Consumer Protections

Advertising

What is bait and switch?

The bait is an advertisement luring you with the promise of an unbeatable deal on a product. The switch occurs when you walk into the store and the salesperson tells you the advertised model isn't available but a more expensive model is. The salesperson has "switched" you from the one you wanted to buy. This practice is illegal in most states if the advertised model was never available in reasonable quantities or is falsely disparaged to discourage its sale. It also is illegal if the store never intended to sell the item but advertised it just to get you into the store so that it could try to sell you a more expensive item.

You have a right to see the model that appeared in the newspaper ad. If the store is "fresh out of them," it also may be guilty of false advertising. You're allowed to be persuaded, but keep up your guard, and don't let someone talk you into buying a model you can't afford. If insisting on your rights gets you nowhere, keep the ad, get the salesperson's name (and that of anyone else you spoke to), and report the matter to the state or local consumer-protection office.