Clause 9 and Schedule 5 on a reseller packet beside England and Wales, no face

How to Review a Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) Clause

Quote advertise and sell, the in-cart ban, and incorporated on this English-law paper, then separate the policy, strike the covenant, or walk.

October 7, 2026•9 min read•Article

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Key takeaway in 30 seconds

Nesta's Friday job is how to review a minimum advertised price map clause on an English-law reseller paper for speckled stoneware. Clause 9 makes Pen Dinas advertise and sell mug SM-350 at £18, bans an in-cart price, and incorporates a policy with immediate termination. CMA guidance can still treat that form as indirect resale price maintenance. Quote the words, then separate the policy, strike the covenant, or walk.

Friday 9 October 2026 is the signature, and Slack is treating one sentence as an advertised-price-only rule. Read it before you sign. If it says advertise and sell and bans an in-cart price, log that, then separate the policy, strike the covenant, or walk.

The packet — the papers you will actually sign — is Pen Dinas Trade Ltd's reseller agreement, Cardiff, English law, courts of England and Wales. Nesta is ops at a 14-person UK speckled-stoneware brand. Mugs leave an Aberystwyth workshop for shops in Wales and the West of England.

Schedule 5 is Mug SM-350 at MAP £18. Clause 9: advertise and sell at not less than that figure; no discount, coupon, bundle, or in-cart price; the reseller acknowledges and agrees a MAP policy incorporated into the agreement. Immediate termination, no cure.

For example, the basket shows £16 and a 2 October 2026 email wants £14 in an Amazon cart. Neither is a finding. Slack on 6 October says the schedule is safer, the clause is most-favoured customer, resale price maintenance so strike the page, twenty-four hours is the cure, and the words are consent plus further assurance. The typical mistake is that stack.

In practice a policy that leaves the sale price free can still be the CMA's example of indirect resale price maintenance. The risk is a United States sentence standing in for the CMA.

Disclaimer: Checkory provides AI support, not legal advice. Consult a qualified lawyer for binding decisions.

How do you separate the advertised price from the checkout?

Clause 9 says advertise and sell, and it bans a discount, a coupon, a bundle, and an in-cart price. Do not read "MAP is only the advertised price" as these words. Log the sale and the cart as caught.

CMA guidance paragraph 8.14, checked on 7 October 2026, says a MAP may leave the sale price free and still disincentivise a lower price. For article 8(2)(a) the CMA treats MAPs as indirect resale price maintenance. English-law colour, not a verdict on clause 9.

On 24 May 2016 the CMA tied Foster Refrigerator's online advertised price to the resale price. Penalty after reductions: £2,298,820. Fridges, not this mug. Do not apply it here.

Foley & Lardner, 13 August 2025, is United States counsel — a qualified lawyer, not the chatbot. It says resellers stay free to sell at any price. Do not write that as the CMA's rule. Park £16 and £14 as not a finding.

Paper log splitting advertised price from the cart, no face

What does signing Schedule 5 actually do?

"Agrees," "acknowledges and agrees," and "incorporated" are assent on this packet. A signature on £18 does not leave the policy outside the contract. Do not sign because Slack calls that safer.

A unilateral policy stays with the supplier, with no price promise. A bilateral covenant is assent plus incorporation. Clause 9 is the second. A United States drafting note, checked on 7 October 2026, says do not take assent-style acknowledgement and do not incorporate the policy. California colour, not the Competition Act 1998.

The Antitrust Attorney Blog, 2 August 2022, restates United States v. Colgate (1919) under the Sherman Act: announce prices, then refuse to deal. United States only. Do not call it English law. Do mark the three assent phrases as this packet.

Outside policy compared with assent words, no face

Which channels and carts does clause 9 catch?

Schedule 5 names one mug and £18. It does not name the site, email, a coupon, Amazon, or a marketplace. Clause 9 still bans the discount, coupon, bundle, and in-cart price. Do not fill channels from a template.

Foley, still United States, says name channels and govern advertised prices, not sales prices. An unnamed 2025 federal district court treated a cart discount as resale price maintenance where a below-MAP sale was "impracticable" on that platform. Do not invent the caption. Write "channels: not listed" beside SM-350.

What this packet prints

Row	Printed here	Not printed
Clause 9	Advertise and sell; discount, coupon, bundle, in-cart	A checkout carve-out
Schedule 5	Mug SM-350: MAP £18	Channels, Amazon, the workshop site
Figures	£16 this shop; £14 that email	A finding
Consequence	Immediately without notice	A cure clock

When to refuse a vendor cure clock?

The principal may terminate immediately without notice. No cure is printed. Do not import 24 hours, 48 hours, 30 days, or a three-strike ladder. Vendor pages are not this packet.

Block exemption article 8, in force since 1 June 2022, treats a limit on the buyer's sale price as a hardcore restriction. A maximum or recommendation survives only if pressure does not fix a minimum. It never names MAP. Not a verdict on clause 9.

CMA paragraph 8.12 lists imposing MAPs and price-tied terminations as indirect resale price maintenance. Paragraph 8.22 may keep a real recommendation or maximum. Paragraph 8.21(c) must be proved as a loss-leader case. It does not save these words. Do not strike every price word.

Immediate termination with no cure clock on the page, no face

Why does terminate-for-policy differ from assent?

A right to stop supply for a policy the supplier keeps is not a promise to sell at £18. Clause 9 is the promise, and it incorporates the policy. Do not call that safer.

The CMA retailer note, updated 29 June 2020, says limiting ads for lower prices, so-called minimum advertised price policies, can still be unlawful resale price maintenance. Fear of losing the supplier is not a defence. Not a ruling on Pen Dinas.

The open-letter page of 21 June 2016, updated 20 June 2017, says both sides can face consequences. A United States note would rather stop supply for an independently adopted policy than an agreed price. Leegin is United States law, not England and Wales.

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Typical mistake

Reading a United States free-to-sell line as the CMA's sentence, then signing because Schedule 5 shows £18. That figure is this schedule, not a finding.

What does the pause sentence need before you sign?

The log quotes advertise and sell, in-cart, acknowledges and agrees, and incorporated, each as this packet, plus £18, no channels, and immediate termination. £16 and £14 are not a finding. Separate the policy, strike the covenant, or walk. Verify before you sign.

If Slack says most-favoured customer, that is a promise to match another customer's price. One sentence on the most-favoured customer guide, then stop. VABEO article 8(2)(f) wide retail parity is not this floor.

Escalate consent to the subcontracting consent guide, and further assurance to the further assurance guide. Who may do the work, and a promise to sign more papers, are different hunts.

Workflow: quote clause 9 → channels not listed → cure not printed → assent column → separate, strike, or walk. On the distribution agreement review page, upload the same file. A highlighter marks those four phrases. You still fill the checklist and scan them before you sign.

MAP log before Friday

Quote sale and cart

Advertise and sell, plus discount, coupon, bundle, and in-cart. This packet.

Mark assent

Agrees, acknowledges and agrees, incorporated. Outside policy is a different document.

Copy Schedule 5

SM-350 at £18. Channels: not listed.

Park the figures

£16 is this basket. £14 is the 2 October email. Neither is a finding.

Quote the consequence

Immediately without notice. Cure clock: not printed.

Choose

Separate the policy, strike the covenant, or walk.

Frequently asked questions

Can the reseller still sell below MAP at checkout?▼

Not on these words. Clause 9 says advertise and sell and bans an in-cart price. Paragraph 8.14 is CMA colour. The free-to-sell line is United States only.

Is a signed MAP schedule safer?▼

No. Agrees, acknowledges and agrees, and incorporated are assent on this packet. A signature beside £18 does not keep the policy outside the contract.

Does a MAP clause equal resale price maintenance?▼

Not as a reason to delete every price word. The CMA treats imposing a MAP as an indirect means. A true maximum or recommendation can still sit in article 8. Leave clause 9 undecided.

Is twenty-four hours the cure on a reseller MAP clause?▼

No. Termination here is immediate, without notice. Vendor hours are not this packet and not England and Wales.

Is this most-favoured customer, consent, or further assurance?▼

No. Matching another price, who may subcontract, and a promise to sign more papers are other reviews. One sentence, then stop.

What should pause Friday's signature?▼

Clause 9 catches the sale and the cart, incorporates the policy, and terminates immediately without notice. Send that sentence instead of a signature.