This week’s rulings have been published. The following advertisers have been formally investigated by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
Rulings for: 13 December 2017
- All Care GB Ltd – Upheld
A flyer for All Care, a domiciliary care service, received in July 2017, included the text “paid DBS checks … guaranteed hours” and “Rates of pay £8.30 per hour Monday through Friday”.
- Gameseek Ltd t/a Gameseek – Upheld
A website selling computer games and equipment, www.gameseek.co.uk, seen in August 2017, featured various products offered at reduced prices on a ‘Cyclonic Deals’ page. The particular deals were:
a. ‘Sea of Thieves’ for Xbox One computer game. The listing featured a countdown clock and text stating “Stock is limited, buy now! Was 38.98. Savings: £13.98 (36%). £25.00. Only a limited amount of stock available!”.
b. ‘Splatoon 2’ for Nintendo Switch computer game. Text stated “Stock is limited, buy now! Was 42.55. Savings: £12.55 (30%). £30.00″ Only a limited amount of stock available!”.
c. ‘Anthem’ for Xbox One computer game. Text stated “Stock is limited, buy now! Was 42.75. Savings: £12.75 (30%). £30.00″ Only a limited amount of stock available!”.
d. Playstation 4 Console Slim 500GB (Black D Chassis). Text stated “Stock is limited, buy now! Was 209.50. Savings: £11.00 (6%). £198.50. Only a limited amount of stock available”.
e. ‘Pokken Tournament DX’ computer game. The product was advertised at the reduced price of £25.00.
- Iceland Foods Ltd – Not Upheld
A regional newspaper ad for bread sold by Iceland Foods, seen in August 2017, stated “Our new luxury bread is crafted using the finest ingredients and a traditional 16 hour slow dough process creating outstanding full flavour”. It also stated that the bread was “Delivered fresh every day”.
Two ads seen on www.milletsports.co.uk in July and August 2017:
a. A product listing for a tennis racket bag stated “Was £30.00 [crossed out] Now £6.00 Save 80%”.
b. A product listing for tennis racket grips stated “Was £60.00 Now £37.00 (Save 38%).
- Nissan Motor (GB) Ltd – Not Upheld
A TV ad and cinema ad for the Nissan Qashqai, see in late July and August 2017:
a. The TV ad featured shots of a Qashqai and a motorbike driving through an urban area. The motorbike was mainly shown on main roads, whereas the car was mainly shown driving down alleys and through a building site. A sequence towards the beginning of the ad showed the man driving the car glancing briefly into the wing mirror, followed by a shot of the motorbike overtaking a car between two lanes of traffic, and then the man glancing into the rear-view mirror. At one point the car turned from an alley into a road which was blocked by a crowd of people. The man looked into the rear-view mirror, saw the motorbike behind him, and put the car into reverse. One shot of the car showed it being driven into a dead-end on the building site and the driver using a dashboard screen to help him reverse. An excavator drove across the car’s path and the car came to a sudden halt. The ad finished with the car coming to a stop in a dock area, and the man getting out. A voice-over stated, “Technology is worthless if it doesn’t give you an edge.” The man watched the motorbike approach, and smiled as the rider took off her helmet and walked up to him. She moved close to him and then pushed her helmet into his chest as she grabbed the car keys out of his hand and moved towards the driver’s door of the car. The voice-over concluded, “The new Nissan Qashqai. Expect more. New intelligent technologies, new design.” Throughout the ad small print referencing features of the car appeared at the bottom of the screen, such as “INTELLIGENT 4×4”, “INTELLIGENT AROUND-VIEW MONITORS” and “REAR CROSS TRAFFIC ALERT”.
b. The cinema ad was the same as the TV ad.
- ProgressPlay Ltd – Upheld
A promoted tweet seen on 8 September 2017 featured an image of female presenters in their swimwear from a daytime television show and the text, “You can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig. #LooseWomen18”.
- Raigins Cleaning Services – Upheld
A competition to win a Henry Hoover, seen on Raigins Cleaning Service’s Facebook page in February 2017.
- The Dental Suite – Not Upheld
A press ad for dentistry practice Dental Suite, seen on 15 June 2017, included a testimonial from a patient, “Ricardo”, who received “same day teeth” treatment. The picture included a before and after photo of his teeth at 9 am and 3 pm. The photo at 9 am showed the teeth were crooked with discoloured gums, while th…
- Tri-Coaching Partnership Ltd – Not Upheld
A website, www.drivinginstructortrainingcourse.co.uk, seen on 11 August 2017 featured text that stated “Tri-Coaching Partnership (TCIT) Approved Members of The Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency Official Register of Driving Instructor Training …”. The ad also included a logo with text that stated “OFFICIAL REGIST…
A flyer for Unity Nightclub, seen in July 2017, stated “Saturday 15 July 2017, Ibiza Giveaway Holiday for 2 inc flights, hotel, itinerary to Ibiza in August 2017, date TBC”. Text below this stated “You must be in the building on Saturday for winner announcement at 1am”.
- Woburn Enterprises Ltd t/a Woburn Safari Park – Not Upheld
A TV ad for Woburn Safari Park was seen on 25 August 2017. The ad began with a scene showing a car driving into Woburn Safari Park. The ad then depicted a young boy and a young girl looking out of the window from the backseats of a car. The ad then showed shots of different animals found in the safari park and also …
- homeraffler.com – Upheld
A prize promotion shown on www.homeraffler.com, seen on 30 June 2017, featured text that stated “WIN A LUXURIOUS LONDON HOME ?… With the help of Eventbrite you can now purchase tickets by using Credit and Debit Cards …? How to Enter To enter into this contest please either purchase ticket using t…
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Previous rulings: 06 December 2017