"Buy", "promotion", "get for free": which inscriptions indicate that a poster is illegal alcohol advertising

The Zaporizhzhia District Administrative Court refused to cancel seven decisions of the State Consumer Service imposing fines totaling UAH 17,850 for violations of advertising legislation.

The court concluded that promotional posters urging to buy alcohol and receive gifts are advertising, not information about the product at the point of sale. The court also confirmed that control over compliance with advertising legislation is carried out according to the special rules of the Law "On Advertising," and not according to the state supervision procedure provided by Law No. 877-V.

Circumstances of the case

During control activities, the State Consumer Service found advertising materials promoting alcoholic products in a store in Chernihiv. In particular, posters with inscriptions such as "PROMOTION. Create your mix," "PROMOTION. Collect a crate...," "Buy a rum of your choice and get a 1.25L Coca-Cola for free," as well as a material stating "See a yellow price tag — catch a discount up to 50%" were placed on windows, doors, and inside the sales area. This material did not contain information about the start and end dates of the discount. Additionally, the alcohol advertisements were not accompanied by the mandatory warning about the harm of excessive alcohol consumption.

As a result of the case review, the control authority issued seven decisions imposing fines.

Plaintiff's position

The plaintiff requested the cancellation of these decisions, arguing that the State Consumer Service conducted control without complying with the requirements of the Law "On the Basic Principles of State Supervision (Control) in the Sphere of Economic Activity," and that the company was not properly notified about the requirement to provide documents and about the case review.

Furthermore, the plaintiff insisted that the disputed posters were placed directly at the point of sale and therefore constitute information about the product or signage, not advertising within the meaning of the Law "On Advertising."

Court's conclusions

The court disagreed with the plaintiff's arguments.

First, it noted that control over compliance with advertising legislation is regulated by the special Law "On Advertising," which does not provide for the issuance of orders, directions, or other documents typical for state supervision measures under Law No. 877-V.

The court took into account the legal position of the Supreme Court set out in the ruling dated April 7, 2025, in case No. 280/275/24, according to which control over compliance with advertising legislation is not, by itself, a state supervision (control) measure within the meaning of Law No. 877-V. Only if the control authority goes beyond checking advertising materials and requests documents not directly related to advertising do the procedures of this Law apply.

The court also established that the State Consumer Service took all necessary actions to properly notify the plaintiff about the case review: sending notifications and requests to the legal address, re-delivering documents at the place of business, and informing about the date and time of the hearing. The mere fact of not receiving postal correspondence, as the court noted citing Supreme Court practice, does not indicate a procedural violation if the authority performed all legally required notification actions.

Why the posters were recognized as advertising

The court separately distinguished between advertising and information about the product at the point of sale.

The decision states that the Law "On Advertising" allows placing information about the product directly at the point of sale if it has a neutral informational character. In contrast, the use of words such as "promotion," "buy," "get for free," "create your mix," offers of gifts or special sales conditions indicate the promotional nature of such materials and are aimed at generating interest in alcoholic products.

The court in case 280/473/26 emphasized that the Law prohibits advertising alcoholic beverages both by means of internal and external advertising. At the same time, information about the product at the point of sale must not contain advertising calls or other elements that stimulate interest in purchasing the product.

Additionally, the court noted that some advertising materials were clearly visible from the street and targeted not only store visitors but an indefinite circle of persons. Under such circumstances, they cannot be considered ordinary signage. The court stated that signage has a neutral character and only informs about the name of the business entity, type of activity, or operating hours, whereas the disputed materials had signs of advertising.

Court decision

The Zaporizhzhia District Administrative Court concluded that the State Consumer Service acted within its authority, took all necessary actions to properly notify the plaintiff, and lawfully made decisions to impose fines.

The court fully denied the claim to recognize these decisions illegal and to cancel them.

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