Lidl air conditioner sale targeted by MP Delphine Batho

The sale of air conditioners at Lidl has drawn the attention of an MP.

Last week, Lidl’s announcement could hardly have come at a better time. Between two heatwaves, the retailer said it would be putting 200,000 items on sale, including low-priced fans and a portable air conditioner for €179. Unfortunately, those quantities were limited because the stock had to be shared across all of the chain’s supermarkets.

Rush on Lidl cooling appliances sparks chaos

Word spread quickly, and large numbers of people turned up on Thursday 2 July in the hope of buying the products. In our pages, we explained how the surge in customers rapidly descended into disorder in supermarkets:

"Shouting, jostling, insults, fights… Videos of the chaos caused by this Lidl sale have been circulating on social networks since yesterday. In just a few minutes, every device that could provide even minimal cooling for the next heatwave had sold out."

Soon afterwards, the same items were being offered on Leboncoin at much higher prices.

Lidl air conditioner pricing dispute and DGCCRF complaint

Those images did not go unnoticed by Génération Ecologie MP Delphine Batho, who believes Lidl had "intentionally organised" the scenes of disorder. She says she will refer the matter to the fraud watchdog (DGCCRF) on grounds of deception.

The MP claims the product had been sold for €149 during an earlier promotional period. In her view, the 20% reduction displayed by the retailer would be a "fake promotion" that "amounts to deception". She uses strong language, describing a "gigantic scam" and "the exploitation of the suffering of French people faced with heatwaves".

Since 2022, any price reduction launched in France must be based on the lowest price charged over the previous 30 days. If that rule is not followed, the DGCCRF can open an investigation, as Les Numériques points out.

Lidl defends itself against Delphine Batho’s accusations

Lidl rejects this account and says it did not promote the product outside its catalogue, which showed the 20% discount. John Paul Scally, President of Lidl France, for his part called "for everyone to act responsibly, with civic-mindedness and mutual respect", and regretted that "individual behaviour" could put its teams at risk.