ASA Adjudication on Royal Mint

Ad

A booklet inserted in a newspaper promoted a limited edition quarter sovereign from the Royal Mint. The ad was headed "A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY" and showed a picture of the quarter sovereign. Further text stated "For the first time ever this limited-edition coin is yours to buy for just £67.50 ... This is the smallest coin of the sovereign family and has been struck in 22 carat gold to the highest standard ... There are only 10,000* available worldwide so order today ... ". Small print at the bottom of the page stated "Coins shown not actual size. Prices and packaging may change without notice ...". A phone number and website were listed beneath the small print.

Issue

The complainant challenged whether the ad was misleading, because when he tried to buy the coin he was quoted a higher price and told the price had increased before the ad was published.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

The Royal Mint said the current economic climate had resulted in unprecedented volatility in the price of gold in recent months.  They said they often had to adjust the recommended retail price (RRP) of their gold products to reflect those fluctuations, and the quarter sovereign featured in the ad typically consisted of 60% gold.

They said when the artwork was initially submitted on 17 February the RRP was £65. However, they had to recall the artwork and amend the RRP to £67.50 because of a price increase on 24 February. On 26 February the price increased to £77.50 but it was too late to amend the ad. They said the price on their website had been adjusted to reflect that change and their customer services department had been briefed accordingly.

They said that when they knew there was going to be a change to their pricing they would advise customers as soon as possible and make appropriate changes to their marketing materials.  Where that was occasionally not possible, they ensured their marketing materials stated "Prices and packaging may change without notice".

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA considered The Royal Mint's comments. Although we noted the price of gold was subject to change, and the gold quarter sovereign consisted typically of 60% gold, we nonetheless considered the advertised price should reflect the price at which the sovereign was sold while the ad was in circulation.  We did not consider that the small print "Prices and packaging may change without notice" was sufficient to avoid disappointing consumers, particularly because the price had increased before the ad appeared and therefore no readers were able to purchase it at the advertised price.  We concluded the ad was misleading.

The ad breached CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation), 7.1 (Truthfulness) and 15.1 (Prices).

Action

The ad must not appear again in its current form.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)