Schiphol airport has removed all misleading “local price” labels from its perfume shops, following an investigation by Dutch consumer rights group Consumentenbond.

Offers on the airport’s website and in printed leaflets have also been corrected after researchers found shoppers were being misled with fake discounts on perfumes, alcohol and electronics.

The Consumentenbond checked the prices of 10 perfumes at Schiphol and compared them with regular high street and online shops. Schiphol claimed its perfumes were cheaper than a so-called “local price”, but did not explain how that price was determined.

For example, Schiphol advertised a bottle of Hugo Man for €30 with a “local price” of €70. But the same perfume could be bought at Kruidvat and Trekpleister for €30 — for a bottle nearly twice the size.

Another example was a bottle of Acqua di Gio by Armani for €85, supposedly discounted from a “local price” of €104, but Douglas sold it for €70.

“According to the law you have to explain how a price advantage is calculated,” said Consumentenbond director Sandra Molenaar. “Schiphol did not do that.”

Schiphol also created the impression of tax-free savings, even though tax-free shopping within the EU was abolished in 1999. On its website, the airport still promised a VAT benefit for all passengers.

“How Schiphol does that is a mystery to us,” said Molenaar. “But shops outside Schiphol simply charge 21% VAT and are still cheaper or at most the same price as Schiphol.”

Schiphol told Luchtvaartnieuws.nl that the prices have been changed and that shopkeepers have been informed about their legal obligations.