‘Secret shoppers’ will check if the euro is being introduced fairly in stores

From August 16, ‘secret shoppers’, activists from various consumer protection organizations, will visit stores and service establishments across Croatia to monitor whether the euro is being introduced fairly, meaning whether consumers are not placed in a worse position than they would be without the introduction of the euro.

Activists from the Consumer Protection Development Organization will conduct checks in four counties: Karlovac, Varaždin, Sisak-Moslavina, and Požega-Slavonia, at a total of 26 retail and 17 service locations. They are doing this as part of a project by the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development titled ‘Secret Shopper for Consumer Protection in the Process of Introducing the Euro in the Republic of Croatia‘.

The secret shoppers, whom the Secretary General of ROZP Željko Tomašić says are not really secret, as they will photograph barcodes, and are not buyers since they will not be purchasing controlled goods, will nonetheless perform an important job in the field. From August 16, they will monitor prices in kunas, and from September 5, also in euros, as from that date all sellers and service providers are required to display dual prices.

Despite the Ministry anticipating the possibility that ‘if they wish’ they could publish ‘black lists’ with the names of those who have made additional profits to the detriment of consumers during the introduction of the euro, ROZP will not do so. They state that previous practices have shown that merchants can sue them for damages, reduced profits.

– It has been left to the associations to ‘do it if they want’, which means that behind us, in case someone sues us for publishing on the black list, there would be no one standing – concluded Tomašić.

Director Gordana Lukić added that they will therefore only publish a list of those who adhere to the official exchange rate and do not introduce the euro to the detriment of their customers, for example, by rounding prices up. They will also publish a report on the movement of prices of goods and services, their dual display, and the correctness of converting kunas to euros, as well as compliance with the ethical code.