ASA Adjudication on Roadnet Automotive Ltd

Ad

A direct mailing, for a device that claimed to block police laser detectors, stated "Imagine if your car was 'invisible'. No more speeding fines. No more points on your license. No more rocketing insurance premiums ..." The mailing continued, "Almost 2 million speeding tickets are currently being handed out to drivers each year, and that figure is rising ever upwards ... Even drivers with unblemished records stretching back decades are falling foul of the increasingly 'sneaky' tactics being employed by police to rake in the maximum revenue for the most minor offences... The Laser Park XS is not sold or packaged as a 'laser jammer'. It's first and foremost a parking aid device ... Police laser guns transmit about 100 pulses of infrared light in one third of a second at a reflective part of a car, usually the front number plate ... The Laser Park XS detects these pulses and returns its own laser beam at the same wavelength. And so the 'unfortunate' side effect is that this 'ordinary' parking sensor prevents the laser unit from getting a reading ... and hence a measure of the vehicle's speed. And if you can't do that, you can't get a ticket! ... As the authorities continue to invest more and more cash in speed traps, the situation can only get worse for ordinary drivers. You may be just one lapse of concentration away from losing your license. With the help of Laser Park XS, it doesn't have to be that way."

Issue

The complainant objected that the mailing was irresponsible because it could encourage unsafe or illegal driving.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

ROADNETautomotive (Roadnet) said the mailing was no longer being used and the remainder had been destroyed. They said they had already become concerned that certain elements and some of the tone of the marketing communication could be seen as irresponsible. They said the copy had been written by a freelance copywriter and did not fit with their sales position.

Roadnet said they did not set out to condone the irresponsible use of their equipment nor to encourage unsafe practices or antisocial behaviour linked to motor vehicles. They said, however, that they believed the data on faulty speed traps and inaccurate speed readings on Britain's roads were a matter of public record, widely featured both in the national press and on the BBC.

They said their future marketing material was now under review.

Assessment

Upheld

We noted Roadnet's comments and welcomed their assurance that their direct mailing was no longer in circulation. Nevertheless, we considered that the wording and tone of the mailing could discourage the correct observation of speed limits on the road, and that it was therefore irresponsible and condoned dangerous driving.

The ad breached CAP Code clauses 2.2 (Social responsibility) 10.1 (Safety) 48.1 and 48.3 (Motoring).

Action

The ad must not appear again in its current form. We told Roadnet to consult the CAP Copy Advice team before advertising again.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)