Kiwi supermarket shoppers love a bargain, but are we getting ripped off?
Recent studies have shown New Zealand supermarket shoppers are among the world's keenest for a cheap deal, spending $6 out of every $10 on groceries that are on special.
Consumer Network New Zealand's Jessica Wilson says these discounts may not be helping us save as much as we want.
"The problem consumers face is that products can be on special so often that they're not really getting the discount claimed," she told TVNZ 1's Breakfast.
"Over the past seven weeks, we tracked a basket of 30 items and more than half of these were on special pretty much week in week out.
"The special price is more like the original price of the product...discounts have become the new normal," she says.
The $20 billion supermarket trade is currently dominated by two players - Foodstuffs, which owns the Pak'n'Save and New World chains, and Australian-owned Countdown.
"Shoppers are conditioned to look for and buy products on promotion," Nielsen's Brett Miller said in a statement.
"Retailers do this because shoppers are more likely to buy...they make us think we're saving money when those discounts are trumped up," says Ms Wilson.
"The risk is we're paying more than we should be."
Wilson says discounts which mislead consumers could even be a breach of the law, and supermarkets could be fined up to $600.
"It is potentially a breach of the Fair Trade Act, stores have to be honest on price and if they don't they could be misleading consumers."
SHARE ME