ASA Adjudication on Saga Group Ltd

Ad

A radio ad and an insert in the national press for motor insurance.

a. The voice-over on the radio ad stated " ... If you’re over 50 we can guarantee to beat your motor insurance renewal quote this summer. Offer available on a like for like basis only, terms and conditions apply ... ".

b. Text in the insert stated "over 50? ... we can guarantee to beat your motor insurance renewal quote ... Saga guarantees to beat your motor insurance renewal quote ... ". Small print stated "available on a like for like basis only. Terms and conditions apply."

Issue

Two complainants objected that the claims were misleading, because Saga was unable to beat their insurance renewal quotes.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

BCAP Radio Code

Response

Saga Group Ltd (Saga) said they were disappointed to receive these complaints because they took steps to ensure that their advertising did not mislead.  They explained that the procedure in place for guaranteeing a cheaper car insurance quote was that, if the initial quote was not lower than the customers renewal quote on a like for like basis, the operator had the authority to discount it immediately to give a cheaper quote than the renewal.  They provided a spreadsheet that showed the amount that had been discounted to fulfil the guarantee as substantiation for this.

Saga said they had investigated the experiences of the two complainants and explained that, in one case, the operator had inputted the wrong reference code which meant their database did not prompt the operator to discount the quote.  They said the other complainant did not query the quote he was given, but they could not determine precisely why he was not offered a discounted quote.

Saga said they believed their advertising did not mislead, but nevertheless said they would amend it in future to prompt consumers to ask about the price guarantee as this would reduce the risk of incorrect codes being entered and would encourage consumers to raise the guaranteed offer with the operator.

The Radio Advertising Clearance Centre (RACC) said, at the time that the ad was sent for clearing, they had no reason to believe the claims were not true.

Assessment

Not upheld

The ASA acknowledged that Saga had a procedure in place that allowed them to offer a quote that was cheaper than a consumer's current renewal quote.  We noted  both ads made clear that the guarantee was against the consumer's current renewal quotes.  Although we were concerned by both the complainants' experiences, we concluded that Saga had shown the guarantee was honoured and that the claims therefore did not mislead.  

We investigated the radio ad under BCAP Radio Advertising Code section 2 rule 3 (Misleadingness), section 2 rule 6 (Fair comparisons) and section 3 rule 1.2 (Financial products and services - Misleadingness) but did not find it in breach.

We investigated the press ad under CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation), 7.1 (Truthfulness), 17.1 (Guarantee) and 19.1 (Fair comparison) but did not find it in breach.

Action

No further action necessary.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Broadcast)

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)