ASA Adjudication on Carlsberg UK Ltd

Ad

A TV ad showed a close-up shot of a man pulling a pint while a male voice-over said “Imagine pulling the perfect pint. At home”. As the camera zoomed out, it revealed that the man was in a garden at a barbeque. The voiceover continued “Carlsberg Draughtmaster. Probably the best barbeque accessory in the world.”

Issue

The complainant, who had purchased the Draughtmaster, challenged whether the ad was misleading, because the instructions had stated that the product was unsuitable for outdoor use.

BCAP TV Code

Response

Carlsberg UK Ltd said they took their responsibilities as an advertiser extremely seriously.  They said while they fully understood the concerns of the complainant, they had not intended to mislead consumers.  In light of the complaint, Carlsberg said they recognised there was a contradiction between the scenes shown in the ad and the instructions included with the product, and regretted any confusion caused.  They advised the ASA that they had no plans to air the ad again.  Carlsberg also provided a copy of the instructions that were included with the Draughtmaster.

Clearcast said they had not been advised during the clearance stage that the instructions advised consumers not to use the product outside.  They said they would not have approved the ad had they been made aware of this.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA noted Carlsberg's regret at any confusion caused and welcomed their assurance not to repeat the ad.  We noted that the ad showed people using the Draughtmaster outside, while the voice-over described the product as a barbeque accessory and further noted that the instructions for the product stated "Never use this appliance outdoors" and "This appliance is for household use only".  We concluded that the depiction of the Draughtmaster for outdoor use was inaccurate and could mislead viewers.

The ad breached CAP (Broadcast) TV Advertising Standards Code Rules 5.1 (Misleading advertising) and 5.2.2 (Implications).

Action

The ad must not be broadcast again.  We reminded Carlsberg of their duty to ensure that all relevant information was provided to the clearance centres when seeking approval of their broadcast ads.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Broadcast)