Strikethrough Prices on HP Website Are ‘Misleading,’ Class Action Alleges [UPDATE]

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Hewlett Packard faces a proposed class action over its alleged display of misleading strikethrough prices and fake limited-time offers for products available for sale on its website.

The 43-page suit claims that the strikethrough prices displayed on HP.com, which typically appear next to an advertised sale price, are misleading in that they do not represent the actual prices at which the company regularly sells its products, or the actual savings obtained by consumers. The case additionally alleges HP falsely advertises certain products as limited in quantity or with limited-time offers. 

This practice, commonly called “false reference pricing,” artificially increases demand for HP products—computers, monitors, printers, accessories and warranties—and induces consumers into paying more for the items “based on a false impression of their value,” the complaint says. Moreover, HP’s alleged use of false reference prices harms competition by giving the company an unfair advantage over other manufacturers who more accurately price their products, the suit contends. 

One plaintiff, a Las Vegas resident, bought a desktop computer from HP.com in September 2021, the case says. Per the suit, HP advertised the computer as on sale for $899.99 and represented that consumers would “Save $100 instantly” off the machine’s regular price of $999.99, which was displayed online as “$999.99.” At the time of the purchase, the lawsuit says, the plaintiff believed he was buying a computer that was valued at and sold regularly for $999.99. 

In the weeks and months prior to September 2021, however, the model of computer purchased by the plaintiff was rarely, if ever, made for sale at the advertised strikethrough price of $999.99, the lawsuit alleges. As far back as at least April 2021, the suit relays, the computer’s sale price was always $899.99. 

The case goes on to claim that the end of a purported “72 Hour Flash Sale,” which included the plaintiff’s model computer, on HP’s website had no effect on the stated price of the machine. Instead, the suit says, HP “simply invented a new sale,” the “HP Days” sale. 

According to the complaint, the “pervasive, ongoing nature” of HP’s “deceptive pricing scheme” evidences that false reference pricing is “central to its overall marketing strategy.” 

The lawsuit looks to cover all individuals and entities who, on or after October 13, 2021, purchased one or more HP products on HP’s website that were advertised as discounted from a strikethrough price. 

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