ASA Adjudication on Thane Direct UK Ltd

Ad

A teleshopping presentation, for the Tobi Steamer, showed the product removing creases from various types of clothing including a silk blouse, jeans, linen and cotton shirts and a woollen sweater. The presenter said "The wrinkles just fall out … now you get professional results at home with the Tobi … because of the professional power of steam, the wrinkles just fall out, in just one pass it takes out all the wrinkles in the denim … it relaxes the fibres and releases the wrinkles. Tobi plumps up the fabrics, rejuvenating the fabrics making them look like new." A demonstration compared ironing and the Tobi. The presenters stated "You'll get the job done up to five times faster". Testimonials included "Every single thing that I've used it on comes out like perfectly" and "It's easier than easy". The presenters went on to use the product on a jacket and claimed "as it releases the wrinkles, it also helps to break down and remove unpleasant odours, leaving your clothes fresh and ready to wear." Testimonials included "Give it a once over, the odours have completely gone". The presenter then stated that there could possibly be millions of dust mites in a mattresses and that, like a lot of people, he was allergic to dust mites. He passed the product across a mattress and a pillow and said "it penetrates right into the mattress killing the dust mites … it's actually killing the dust mites in the pillow". Testimonials included "I rested really well knowing that my kids were not being exposed to the dust mites" and "My kids don't seem to be suffering from their allergies quite as much, so it definitely is making a difference".

Issue

1. Two viewers challenged whether the product removed creases from clothes as shown.

2. One of the viewers challenged whether the product pressed clothes faster than a conventional iron as claimed.

3. The ASA challenged whether the product removed odours from items, killed dust mites and reduced allergies.

BCAP TV Code

Response

Thane Direct UK (Thane) said they believed their use of an experienced Compliance Manager and editing team, as well as passing most infomercial advertising through Clearcast for approval, meant that they maintained a good level of compliance with BCAP rules.  They explained that the ad the viewers saw was not the correct Clearcast-approved version of the show and its appearance was due to an in-house tape library error.   Thane sent the approved version of the ad and said they had taken on board the advice given by Clearcast.  They added that they had put in place a further system that should prevent the library error occurring again, and that following the complaint, they had further edited the Clearcast-approved ad to ensure there was no more confusion.

1. In answer to one viewers comment that the ad showed wrinkles disappearing before the steamer even touched the fabric, Thane said in certain close-up shots the garment was pulled down from below in order to run the Tobi over it from the top.  They disputed that that was an editing trick, and explained that the presentation merely demonstrated how the product should be used to obtain the best results, and that the product was also shown in use from various other angles throughout the ad.  They maintained that the presentation was shot in real time, apart from when it stated otherwise, and the results achieved were legitimate.    

Thane said the testimonials were not paid for and merely depicted those people's personal experience of using the Tobi.  They conceded that, the heavier the fabric and the deeper the creases, the longer the Tobi would need to be held against that fabric to be fully effective, and that the same was true of an iron.  They pointed out that garment steamers had to be used correctly, as per their instruction manual and DVD, to obtain the best results.  They said tests had been performed to show that the Tobi worked on various fabrics, and sent copies of the fabric trials.  They added that the product was demonstrated in retail stores and on live shopping channels, and that that would not be possible if the product did not remove creases in garments.

2.  Thane said the claim "up to five times faster" was no longer appearing.  They said the only other place in the ad where a speed claim was implied was the real-time demonstration between an iron and a Tobi, being used on identical baskets of laundry, the outcome being that the Tobi finished all 20 garments while the iron completed only four.  They explained that the test was obviously not intended to be a clinical trial, but, rather, to demonstrate the failings of the iron compared to the Tobi; garments were therefore selected to highlight those failings.  For example, they included shirts, which on an ironing board would need to be repositioned continuously and care would need to be taken with buttons and pockets, whereas with the Tobi, shirts could be hung up and each side done in one go, gliding over buttons and pockets. They also included items made of fabrics that became shiny on direct contact with excessive heat, because when using an iron those would need to be turned inside out, and pleated items, because they would need to be arranged carefully on the ironing board to achieve the correct line.     

3. Thane said using steam directly on fabrics that contained odours would eventually break them down and hence help remove them.  They pointed out that the ad stated "helps to break down".  They said following the complaint they had decided to remove the phrase "give it a once-over and the odours are completely gone" with immediate effect.  They maintained that the testimonials about allergies and dust mites were merely the opinions of users who were not paid for their comments.    Thane sent an abstract of a trial to prove that steam eliminated dust mites.  They conceded that the trial did not use the Tobi steamer, but highlighted its conclusion "steam cleaning has considerable potential as an highly effective and efficient method of killing dust mites and reducing concentrations of Der p 1 [an allergen] in domestic premises."

Thane said the testimonials about allergies were broadcast in error.  They pointed out that the only remaining mention of allergies in the show came from the host, who stated "As a matter of fact I am allergic to dust mites like a lot of people".  They felt that that was merely a statement and did not make any claims about the product.

Assessment

1.  Upheld

The ASA noted the ad stated "in just one pass it takes out all the wrinkles".  We considered that viewers would understand that the product could remove all wrinkles from all types of fabric in one pass.  Because we had not seen evidence to show that it did, we concluded that the ad was likely to mislead.

On this point, the ad breached CAP (Broadcast) TV Advertising Standards Code Rules 5.1 (Misleading advertising), 5.2.1 (Evidence) and 5.2.2 (Implications).

2. Upheld

We noted the demonstration that compared the Tobi with an iron had selected garments that would take considerably longer to press with an iron than with a steamer due to fabric composition or features such as buttons or pleats. We considered that the demonstration itself, which showed the garments being tested, was unlikely to give a misleading impression of the speed of the Tobi.  We also considered, however, that the claim "up to five times faster" implied that the Tobi could work five times faster than an iron on any type of clothing.  Because the claim did not apply to all garments, we concluded that the ad was likely to mislead.  

On this point, the ad breached CAP (Broadcast) TV Advertising Standards Code Rules 5.1 (Misleading advertising), 5.2.1 (Evidence) and 5.2.2 (Implications).

3. Upheld

We understood that steam could help to break down some odours in fabrics, but noted the testimonial stated "Give it a once-over and the odours are completely gone".  Because we had not seen evidence to show that the Tobi could completely remove odours we concluded that the claim was likely to mislead viewers. We noted the abstract of the study about dust mite control.  We considered, however, that we had not seen product-specific evidence to show that the Tobi killed dust mites.  We noted the testimonial referred to relief from allergies.  We considered that viewers would infer from that that allergy sufferers in general would benefit from using the product.   Because we had not seen evidence that they would, we concluded that the ad was likely to mislead.

On this point, the ad breached CAP (Broadcast) TV Advertising Standards Code Rules 5.1 (Misleading advertising), 5.2.1 (Evidence) and 5.2.2 (Implications).

Action

The ad must not be broadcast again in its current form.  We welcomed Thanes assurance that the version Clearcast did not accept would not be broadcast again.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Broadcast)