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The Pharmaceutical Journal Vol 263 No 7074 p893
December 4, 1999 Business

Unit price exemption for small shops

Small shops will be exempted from the provisions of the Price Marking Order 1999 which implements a requirement for unit pricing. To qualify, premises must have a "relevant floor area", excluding any area not used for the retail sale of products or for the display of such products, less than 280 sq m.
The Order requires traders to display both the selling price and the price, including VAT, per specified unit. These units could be one kilogram, one litre, one metre, one square metre, one cubic metre or the price per individual item when the products are sold by number. Many toiletry, cosmetic and sun products will be covered by the Order and smaller units, normally per 100ml or 100g, are specified in the Order for these.

Many toiletry, cosmetic and sun products will be covered by the Price Marking Order

Under the Order, which comes into effect from March 18, 2000, retail premises must display prices in such a way that they are visible to customers without them having to ask the trader or someone else in order to ascertain it. The indication of the selling and unit prices must be "unambiguous, easily identifiable and clearly legible" and "placed in proximity to the products to which it relates". However, products which have been reduced in price due to damage or a short shelf life do not have to be unit priced.
The Price Marking Order 1999, SI 1999 No 3042, (ISBN 0-11-085510-8), The Stationery Office, London, price £2.