SOME merchants consider dual-price displays in euros and Slovak crowns to be no longer useful, according to a survey in April carried out by the Association of Slovak Consumers (ZSS), the SITA newswire reported.
Customers often asked why prices in both currencies were still being displayed in stores and outlets since there is no longer any need for them, according to what personnel in the outlets told those carrying out the survey. Dual-price displays have been disappearing recently, even though regulations state that prices in Slovak crowns should still be shown, for information purposes, until the end of 2009. The absences have been noted especially in smaller towns and villages located in central and eastern Slovak districts, SITA wrote.
The government plenipotentiary for euro adoption, Igor Barát, responded that dual-price displays are not useless. Habits cannot be eliminated by an official decision, he said, and time was needed for other financial values to be established. It is important that the price statements remain in their current form until the end of the year to help consumers orient themselves, SITA reported Barát as saying.
According to Barát, dual-price display serves to prevent groundless price hikes. Consumers recognise a price change easily if the sum in crowns is also available.
The Slovak Trade Inspectorate (SOI) also found deficiencies in dual-price displays in April. Inspections carried out by the SOI showed that price displays in the two currencies were problematic in almost 12 percent of the venues checked, an increase from 9 percent in March.
