How unsuspecting families pay triple the price for same bottle of sun cream — here’s the best high street deals
Our table shows the best and worst prices we found for identical products
UNSUSPECTING families can end up paying three times the price for identical bottles of sun cream, a Sun probe reveals.
High Street chains such as Wilko, Lloyds Pharmacy and Morrisons are charging as much as £8 more for the same bottle compared to rival retailers.
Among the most expensive is a 150ml bottle of Ambre Solaire cream spray which costs £14 from Wilkinsons, even though it is £8 in Boots and £9 in Superdrug.
Morrisons is selling Nivea after sun lotion for £10 on its website, but Asda and Boots sells the same bottle for £4.
And Lloyds Pharmacy prices Nivea’s moisturising sun lotion at £12.29, while at Asda and Tesco it is just £4.
Consumer experts have warned families to compare prices before they buy.
Gilad Simhony, CEO of shopping website , said: “Seasonal items such as sun care are essential additions to shoppers’ baskets but can also increase the cost of their shop markedly.
“Although they are often one-off purchases, researching and comparing sun care items before you shop doesn’t take long and can result in huge savings. This way, neither your skin nor your bank account gets burned.”
Our probe found retailers are also luring shoppers into buying sun lotion with huge discounts designed to convince them they are getting a good deal, even though the reduced price is the same as the standard price in other stores.
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For example, Morrisons has been selling a Piz Buin spray for £8, reduced from £17. But Boots and Superdrug sell it at the lower price anyway.
Asda do the same with the Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Lotion SPF 15, which it sells for £6 reduced from £12.
But Tesco and Sainsbury’s sell it for a straight price of £6.
And Ocado sells a pocket-sized Nivea kids’ sun lotion for £3 as a half-price deal, even though Superdrug and Sainsbury’s sell it at the lower price with no reduction.
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Our table shows the best and worst prices we found for identical products.
Martyn James, of the complaints handling website , said: “Sunscreen has always been a money-spinner for the supermarkets but the deals and offers can vary hugely, and many are a total rip-off.
“Overpriced sunscreen can result in cash-strapped consumers compromising on this vital holiday purchase. And with skin cancer rates on the rise, the impact could hit you harder than just your wallet.”
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