Definitions

PURPOSE: The attorney general administers and enforces the provisions of the Merchandising Practices Act, Chapter 407, RSMo (1986). The attorney general may make rules necessary to the administration and enforcement of the provisions of Chapter 407 and may define terms whether or not used in the Act, insofar as the definitions are not inconsistent with the Act. This rule defines certain terms used in the enforcement of the Act and in rules, forms and orders made thereunder. (1) Unless inconsistent with definitions provided in Chapter 407, RSMo and in these rules, the following terms and phrases shall mean: (A) Advertisement (including the terms advertise and advertising) shall mean any oral, written, graphic or pictorial statement made by a seller in any manner in the course of the solicitation of business. Advertisement includes, without limitation, any statement or representation made in a newspaper, magazine or other publication, or on radio or television, including cable, or contained in any notice, handbill, sign, billboard, banner, poster, display, circular, pamphlet or letter, or printed on or contained in any tag or label which is attached to or accompanies any product offered for sale; (B) Bait offer shall mean an alluring but insincere offer to sell a product which the seller does not intend to—i) sell at all; ii) sell at the price which it offered the product; or iii) provide the product in a quantity to meet the reasonably expected public demand, unless the quantity is specifically stated as limited in the advertisement; (C) Bait and switch scheme shall mean a plan to make alluring but insincere offers which the seller does not intend to sell when the purpose is to switch consumers from buying the advertised product to buying another product; (D) Clear and conspicuous (including the terms clearly and conspicuously) shall mean that the statement, representation or term being disclosed is a size, color contrast or audibility and is so placed and presented as to be—i) readily noticeable and ii) reasonably understandable; (E) Comparative price shall mean the price of a product to which a seller is comparing its current price in any advertisement; (F) Date as applied to date on which a price comparison is stated in the advertisement in newspapers, catalogs or other printed publications shall mean either the date of publication or distribution or the date on which the completed advertising copy is submitted to the printer for final printing and publication, provided the submission date does not exceed twelve (12) weeks from the date of actual publication or distribution; (G) Material shall mean that the representation or fact is likely to significantly influence the consumer’s purchasing decision; (H) Original price shall mean a former price which the seller first offered in connection with the product; (I) Person shall mean an association, corporation, individual, institution, natural person, organization, partnership, trust or any other legal entity; (J) Price comparison shall mean the direct comparison in any advertisement (expressed wholly or in part in dollars, cents, fractions or percentages) of a seller’s current price for a product with any other price, whether or not the other price is actually stated in the advertisement; (K) Product shall mean any personal property or services or other merchandise sold primarily for personal, family or household use and not for resale or for use or consumption in a trade or business. Product does not include any intangible merchandise sold by any bank, savings institution, trust company, mortgage company, insurance company or other financial institution; (L) Regular price shall mean a seller’s usual and customary price; (M) Sale shall mean a reduction from the seller’s former or future price of the product offered for a limited period of time, except for clearance or closeout situations in which the seller permanently reduces its price in order to remove the product from its inventory; (N) Seller shall mean any person who offers, advertises or sells any product for sale, rental or lease in this state. Seller includes any officer, agent, employee, salesperson or representative of a seller; and (O) Trade area shall mean the immediate geographic area within a one hundred (100) mile radius of any outlet of the seller and where the seller’s advertisement is disseminated. AUTHORITY: sections 407.020 and 407.145, RSMo 1986.* Original rule filed June 25, 1990, effective Nov. 30, 1990. *Original authority: 407.020, RSMo 1967, amended 1973, 1985, 1986 and 407.145, RSMo 1986.