The Society was responsible for ensuring that sales of controlled pharmaceuticals only took place under the supervision of a pharmacist. The defendants had adopted supermarket style arrangements where the purchaser selected the goods and took them to a till. The Society said that a sale took place when the goods were selected, and at a time when the transaction was unsupervised. ‘The question is whether the offer is an offer of the purchaser, or an offer of the buyer.’
Held: There was in principle no difference between the supermarket type arrangement and an ordinary shop. ‘The mere exposure of goods for sale by a shopkeeper indicates to the public that he is willing to treat but does not amount to an offer to sell. I do not think I ought to hold that that principle is completerly reversed merely because there is a self-service scheme, such as this, in operation. In my opinion it comes to no more than that the customer is informed that he may himself pick up an article and bring it to the shopkeeper with a view to buying it, and if, but only if, the shopkeeper then expresses his willingness to sell, the contract for sale is completed. In fact, the offer is an offer to buy, and there is no offer to sell. . . ‘ There is no sale until acceptance of the price at the till. The shopkeeper has to be free to refuse to sell, and the buyer free to pick something up without having immediately bought it. ‘The offer, the acceptance of the price, and therefore the sale, take place under the supervision of the pharmacist.’
Lord Goddard CJ
[1952] 2 All ER 456, [1952] 2 QB 795, [1953] EWCA Civ 6
Bailii
Pharmacy and Poisons Act 1933 18(1)(a)(iii)
England and Wales
Citing:
Considered – Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co CA 7-Dec-1892
Unilateral Contract Liability
The defendants advertised ‘The Carbolic Smoke Ball,’ in the Pall Mall Gazette, saying ‘pounds 100 reward will be paid by the Carbolic Smoke Ball Company to any person who contracts the increasing epidemic influenza, colds, or any disease caused by . .
Cited by:
Appeal from – Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Boots Cash Chemists (Southern) Ltd CA 5-Feb-1953
The defendant was charged with selling controlled pharmaceutical products other than under the supervision of a pharmacist. The shop operated on a self-service basis. The Society appealed.
Held: The acquittal was confirmed. Somervell LJ said: . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Contract
Leading Case
Updated: 02 November 2021; Ref: scu.183108