Customer reviews - BGH: An average value suffices for advertising with customer reviews
A person who advertises on the internet with average star ratings, according to a ruling by the Federal Court of Justice (BGH), does not have to disclose the customer reviews in detail according to a single star classification. A typical consumer is aware that an average star rating is usually based on a mix of good and bad reviews, which can vary significantly from one another, the First Civil Senate in Karlsruhe ruled (Az. I ZR 143/23).
Such disclosure, as requested by the Central Office for the Fight against Unfair Competition, provides no significant added value from the perspective of the BGH. "In particular, it cannot provide insight into the reasons that led a customer to give a specific rating," the explanation stated.
Plaintiff claims that advertising is deceptive
The association had originally sued over advertising on a website that aims to connect real estate sellers with real estate brokers. The advertising in question reportedly used average customer ratings without specifying the total number of ratings, the time period covered by the ratings, or a breakdown by individual star classes.
The Landgericht Hamburg had prohibited the defendant from advertising with such customer ratings without specifying the total number and time period of the customer ratings in 2022. The defendant's request for an injunction against advertising without disclosure of customer ratings by star classes was denied. The Hamburg Oberlandesgericht upheld this decision, and now the BGH has followed suit.
- The association argued that the defendant's use of average star ratings in their real estate advertising was deceptive, given that they did not disclose the total number of ratings, the time period covered, or a breakdown by individual star classes.
- The Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe, Germany, reviewed a case concerning a person who advertised on the web with average star ratings, and the court ruled that they were not obligated to disclose customer reviews in detail according to a single star classification.
- Despite the Central Office for the Fight against Unfair Competition's request, the Federal Court of Justice concluded that disclosing customer reviews in detail does not provide significant added value, as it does not provide insight into the reasons behind a specific rating given by a consumer.
- In a previous court case in Hamburg, the Landgericht Hamburg prohibited the defendant from advertising with average customer ratings without specifying the total number and time period of the customer ratings in 2022.
- Following the Hamburg Oberlandesgericht's upholding of this decision, the Federal Court of Justice in Germany has now agreed with the lower courts' findings, further establishing a precedent for real estate advertising in Germany that requires thorough disclosure of customer ratings.
