ASA Adjudication on Alcohol in Emergency Ltd

Ad

A circular, for an alcohol delivery service, stated “A in E Southampton’s premier drink delivery service ‘Your quick link to drink’ www.ALCOHOLINEMERGENCY.CO.UK.”

Issue

The complainant challenged whether:

1. the play on words "A&E" was offensive in light of the number of alcohol related casualties and

2. the ad encouraged an irresponsible attitude to drinking alcohol by portraying alcohol as indispensible.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

1. Alcohol in Emergency (AinE) stated that the flashing light on the top of the van was intended to communicate to readers that they offered a night-time delivery service and that it was not their intention to create the semblance of an ambulance or other emergency services.  They said that the phrase "AinE" was used for brevity in the ad and told us they would not use it in future ads.

2. AinE said that the words "Alcohol in Emergency" was their trading name and that they were unable to remove it from their marketing communications; they argued that it was not a play on the phrase "Accident and Emergency."  AinE said that they adopted strict service policies and would not serve alcohol to anyone deemed to be "too intoxicated" and the phrase "your quick link to drink" was merely a reference to their delivery method and was not condoning excessive alcohol consumption.

Assessment

1. & 2. Upheld

We considered that the phrase "Alcohol in Emergency" was likely to be seen as suggesting that someone might urgently need alcohol in a comparable way to  requiring medical attention; we considered that the ad therefore presented it as indispensible.  Furthermore, we considered that the claim "your quick link to drink" was likely to be seen as a reference to consuming alcohol within a short period of time in an excessive manner.  We concluded that the claim "Alcohol in Emergency" and the overall presentation of the ad was  likely to be seen as encouraging and condoning irresponsible consumption of alcohol and be seen as offensive and socially irresponsible.

The ASA welcomed AinE's assurance that it would no longer use the abbreviation "AinE" and would amend the image in its future ads.

On this point, the ad breached CAP Code clauses 2.2 (Social responsibility), 5.1 (Decency) and 56.2 and 56.4 (Alcoholic Drinks).

Action

The ad must not appear again in its current form.  We told AinE to not use the name "Alcohol in Emergency" or its abbreviated form "AinE" in future marketing material.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)