Pharmaceutical Society Of Great Britain v Boots Cash Chemists (Southern) Ltd

Goods displayed in a self-service shop ordinarily constitute an invitation to customers to make offers, rather than an offer capable of acceptance by simply taking an article from a shelf. The customer makes the offer to buy at the payment desk, and the shopkeeper may accept or reject it there. The sale therefore occurs when payment is accepted, under the supervision of a registered pharmacist where the statute requires supervision. The self-service arrangement does not alter the ordinary contractual analysis.

The Pharmaceutical Society appealed from a decision of the Lord Chief Justice on a case stated. The proceedings concerned Boots’ self-service shop and the sale of medicines containing small quantities of poisons listed under the Pharmacy and Poisons Act 1933.

The Society contended that a sale occurred when a customer picked an article from a shelf and placed it in a basket. If so, the sale would precede the involvement of the pharmacist at the payment desk. The central issue was the point at which the sale was effected and whether it was then made by or under the supervision of a registered pharmacist.

1. Appeal dismissed. The sale was made under the supervision of a registered pharmacist. The appeal was dismissed with costs, and leave to appeal was refused.
2. Per Lord Justice Somervell, with whom Lord Justices Birkett and Romer agreed, goods displayed in an ordinary shop, including a self-service shop, do not ordinarily amount to an offer by the shopkeeper to sell. The display is an invitation to customers to inspect and select goods.
3. The customer makes the offer to buy when presenting the selected goods at the payment desk. The contract is completed only when the shopkeeper, or an employee acting on the shopkeeper’s behalf, accepts that offer, normally by accepting payment.
4. This construction reflects the practical nature of retail transactions. It permits a customer to replace or return goods before payment and preserves the shopkeeper’s ability to refuse a sale. The self-service layout creates no different contractual implication.
5. Under section 18(1)(a)(iii) of the Pharmacy and Poisons Act 1933, the relevant sale may be effected by someone who is not a registered pharmacist, provided that it is effected under the supervision of one. Since acceptance and payment occurred at the desk where a registered pharmacist was present and able to exercise the relevant supervision, the statutory requirement was satisfied.
6. Lord Justice Birkett additionally noted the Pharmaceutical Society’s statutory enforcement duty under section 25 of the Act.

• Court of Appeal: Appeal from the Lord Chief Justice’s decision on a case stated. Appeal dismissed with costs; leave to appeal refused.