ASA Adjudication on Everest Ltd

Ad

A brochure for Everest promoted double glazed windows. Page 17 of the brochure showed a picture of their timber framed sash windows and was headed "LESS WASTE". To the right of the image was an energy rating table headed "Energy Window" that contained a series of coloured arrows from A (green) to G (red). In another column a second green arrow labelled "A" pointed at the green arrow labelled "A" on the left.

Text stated "STAY IN POCKET AS YOU HELP THE ENVIRONMENT ... Everest's standard pvc-u windows employ low emissivity glass which, under the new Window Energy Rating (WER) are 'B-rated'. And for the ultimate saving our premium pvc-u windows are 'A-rated' ... they won't just save you hundreds or thousands of pounds over the years. They'll save great amounts of energy ... ".

Page 43 was headed "TIMBER SASH WINDOWS". Text stated "Sash windows, with their elegant proportions and charming appearance, have been used widely in Europe since the 17th Century. Now Everest timber sash windows give you the highest standards of warmth and security to go along with their rich historic character."

Issue

The complainant, who understood that the timber sash windows had only recently been classified as having an "E" energy rating with no rating before that, challenged whether:

1. page 17 of the brochure misleadingly implied that the sash windows had a high rating for energy efficiency, because it included a photo of the sash windows underneath the text "LESS WASTE" and next to the Window Energy Rating table with an arrow pointing at the "A" rating, and

2. the claim "Everest timber sash windows give you the highest standards of warmth" on page 43 of the brochure was misleading because the energy rating of their timber sash windows was lower than one of their competitors.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

1. Everest Ltd (Everest) said they did not believe page 17 of the brochure was misleading, because the copy set out clearly that it was their "premium pvc-u windows" that were "A-rated".  They said the table was part of the copy on page 17 that related to energy savings in the home. They said it was not relevant to the picture shown on page 17.  They added that the window pictured on that page was a not a timber-framed sash window, but was a PVC-U sash window.   

2. Everest said page 43 of the brochure did not make the claim highlighted by the complainant.  They pointed out that the phrase in its entirety stated "Now Everest timber sash windows give the highest standards of warmth and security to go along with their rich, historic character".  They said the claim made was not that Everest's timber sash windows gave the highest standard of warmth (singular) but that they gave the highest standards of warmth (plural) within the constraints imposed by keeping the design within traditional lines.  They said it was not the case that all their timber sash windows were classified as having an "E" energy rating.  They said there was no standard rating for Everest timber sash windows which was why they made no reference to energy rating on the four pages of the brochure that related to timber sash windows.  They said the energy rating of their timber sash windows ranged from "A" to "G" depending on the design selected.

Assessment

1. Not upheld

The ASA noted Everest's comments.  Although we considered it was not clear from the ad whether or not the window featured had a timber sash frame or a pvc-u frame, we accepted that the body copy made clear which windows were A-rated, because it stated "And for the ultimate saving our premium pvc-u windows are 'A-rated' ... ".  Although we noted the energy ratings table was next to a picture of a sash window that readers may have thought was timber framed, we noted the text made no claim about the energy ratings of timber sash windows. We therefore concluded the table would be seen by most readers as illustrating the point made in the body copy about the A-rated PVC-U frames, and concluded page 17 of the brochure did not imply timber sash windows had a high energy rating.

On this point we investigated the ad under CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation), 7.1 (Truthfulness) and 19.1 (Other comparisons) but did not find it in breach.

2. Not upheld

We noted Everest's comments.  We accepted their assertion that the claim "Everest timber sash windows give you the highest standards of warmth ... " did not imply their timber sash windows had the highest energy rating, but that they gave the highest standards of warmth within the constraints imposed by traditional sash window designs.  Furthermore, we considered that the use of the word "standards" in the plural form would be understood by readers as referring to standards in general, rather than a single standard that was higher than all others, and would not be seen as a comparison with the energy ratings of their competitors timber sash windows.  We therefore concluded that the ad was not misleading.

On this point we investigated the ad under CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation), 7.1 (Truthfulness) and 19.1 (Other comparisons) but did not find it in breach.

Action

No further action necessary.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)