"500 products permanently cheaper!" – Lidl loses lawsuit over advertising claims

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It sounded like a real bombshell for anyone who counts every penny when shopping: "500 products permanently cheaper." Lidl splashed the slogan across its advertising in May 2025 and went one better: it was the "biggest price reduction ever." For many people, a statement like this automatically means: When I go to my local Lidl tomorrow, I'll find a huge number of items that cost noticeably less—and not just for a week, but permanently.

As reported by SWR, the Heilbronn Regional Court has now put a stop to this. The Hamburg Consumer Advice Center had filed a lawsuit and won: the campaign was deemed misleading, and Lidl is not allowed to continue this advertising. If the ruling becomes final, violations will be punishable by fines of up to €250,000.

The core error: "500" sounded like every branch—but it was added up nationwide.

The central question was: What does a normal customer understand when they read "500 products permanently cheaper"? The court ruled that it could be assumed that 500 products were cheaper in every single store. That would be a real bombshell, because Lidl has around 3,700 stores in Germany.

In fact, according to critics, the "500" did not apply to each individual store, but was spread across all branches. That's a difference like night and day. After all, customers don't buy "Germany"; they buy in their local store. So if the figure is just a nationwide total, the benefit quickly appears to be much smaller in reality than the poster promises.

Counting method similar to that used by a conjurer: one yogurt becomes several "products."

The trial also dealt with how Lidl was supposed to have counted. Example: yogurt. If there trademark a trademark and each flavor (strawberry, vanilla, cherry) is counted as a separate item, then the number "500" grows faster without the customer really having 500 completely different items in mind. Formally, this can be done—but as an advertising message, it can come across as an inflated trick.

"Permanent" and "biggest ever": Where's the proof, where's the list?

The consumer center also said that the campaign had given the impression that these were exceptional and sustained price reductions, which had not been sufficiently proven. In some cases, products had only been cheaper for a short time beforehand or had already been sold at similar prices.

There is also a practical problem: it was not clear to customers which 500 items these were. There was no complete, easily accessible list. There was a footnote with references to regional adjustments, but footnotes like these often get lost in everyday life, while the large number sticks in people's minds.

Lidl: "We are considering further steps."

Following the ruling, Lidl stated that it had taken note of the decision and would consider legal action as soon as the written grounds for the ruling were available. At the same time, the discounter emphasized that it had "significantly reduced prices in one fell swoop as never before."

The critical view: Anyone who advertises so heavily must deliver so clearly that no one is left guessing. Otherwise, it's not a promise to save money, but a game of trust with a stacked deck.

Source: tagesschau.de