TV Commercials as Offers?

The folks at Chrysler are trying to sell trucks, and they’re pitching a 60-day return-it-if-you-don’t-like-it policy in a new commercial that raises some interesting contract law questions.

In Leonard v. Pepsico, Inc., 88 F. Supp. 2d 116, (S.D.N.Y. 1999), aff’d 210 F.3d 88 (2d Cir. 2000), a popular teaching case — the court held that a TV commercial encouraging people to collect “Pepsi Points” to get a Harrier fighter jet was not, as a matter of law, an offer, even if Pepsi was serious about giving away a Harrier.  That’s not (in my view) one of the stronger parts of the opinion, since a reasonable person would presumably think that if he or she collected and sent in 75 Pepsi Points, Pepsi would be obliged to send them a T-shirt.  In this case, would customers reasonably think that if they buy a new Dodge Ram, they can bring it back for any reason? 

Thanks to Celia Taylor (Denver) for the link.

FGS