The British online fashion retailer Boohoo has been fined €2.3 million (£2 million) by France’s consumer watchdog for misleading practices, including fake discounts. The Manchester-based company, whose parent group was renamed Debenhams Group last year, was found to have exaggerated its discounts, giving shoppers a false impression of the savings they were getting, according to France’s directorate-general for competition, consumer affairs, and fraud control.
Of the promotions reviewed by the regulator, 40% were not genuine price cuts, 7% offered a smaller reduction than advertised, and 48% actually involved a price increase. Boohoo also used terms like “leather” or “suede” to sell synthetic products, which goes against French rules on product labeling, the regulator said.
This fine comes four years after Boohoo settled a $100 million (£73 million) US lawsuit that accused the retailer of using fake promotions to mislead shoppers. The case, brought in California, was settled “without admission of liability,” according to Boohoo. Its brands PrettyLittleThing and NastyGal were accused of running sham sales and promotions in the US for at least four to five years.
The French fine follows a difficult period for the online seller, which has faced growing competition from low-cost rivals like Shein, Temu, and the secondhand site Vinted, as well as higher delivery costs and US tariffs. The group has been trying to revive sales after a boom during the Covid pandemic, when high street shops were closed. With profits squeezed by rising wages and new regulations, such as packaging and European textile waste rules, more established UK online sellers are struggling to invest enough to keep up with Shein’s digital innovation.
Boohoo’s reputation was also damaged in 2020 after reports of poor working conditions in Leicester factories used by the company were found to be “substantially true” in a critical independent report.
Debenhams Group, which owns brands including Oasis, Warehouse, and Karen Millen, as well as its namesake brand and Boohoo, raised £35 million from shareholders in February to reduce debt. It has also faced criticism of its strategy from its biggest shareholder, Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group, which now owns more than a quarter of the company.
A spokesperson for Boohoo said the issues related to a period from October 2023 to February 2024, when the business was under its previous management, and were now resolved. “We have cooperated fully with the regulator, and continue to review how we price and label our products,” the spokesperson said.
Debenhams Group has been contacted for comment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs about Boohoos fine written in a natural clear tone
General Background
1 What exactly happened with Boohoo and the fine
Boohoo was fined 23 million by Frances consumer watchdog the DGCCRF The fine was issued because the company was using misleading discount practices on its French website
2 What did Boohoo do wrong
The watchdog found that Boohoo was showing fake original prices They would inflate the price of an item before a sale or use a previous price that was only around for a very short time to make the discount look much bigger than it actually was This is illegal under EU and French consumer law
3 When did this happen
The investigation covered a period between 2021 and 2022 and the fine was officially announced in late 2024
4 Is this just a problem in France
The fine was issued by the French authority but the EU has strict rules about pricing transparency This ruling sets a precedent that could affect how Boohoo operate across Europe
The Specifics of the Misleading Practice
5 How do they fake a discount
A common tactic is to set a high reference price for 28 days then drop it for a sale But Boohoo was reportedly using reference prices that were only in place for a few days or that were artificially inflated so the sale price wasnt actually a genuine reduction
6 Did Boohoo admit to doing this
Boohoo didnt explicitly admit guilt but they agreed to pay the fine as part of a settlement with the French authorities They also committed to changing their pricing practices in France
7 Is Boohoo the only brand doing this
No This is a widespread issue in online retail especially in fast fashion However Boohoo is one of the biggest names to be caught and fined for it Other brands have faced similar penalties in Europe
Impact Consumer Advice
8 If I bought something from Boohoo during that time can I get a refund
Unfortunately no This fine is a penalty from the government not a classaction lawsuit The authorities are not forcing Bo
