ASA Adjudication on Corioliss Ltd

Ad

a. A trade magazine ad for Corioliss hair straighteners described the Pro Black and Pro Pink models as "Perfect for salon use these small and lightweight straighteners have 2.5cm ceramic coated plates that heat up fast. Reaching a temperature of 210 degrees Celsius in six seconds, this will remain constant throughout use."

b. A magazine ad featured a Corioliss hair straightener and was headlined "EXCLUSIVE! WORLD'S FIRST RECHARGEABLE CORDLESS HAIR STRAIGHTENER." Text below stated "This unique, cordless hair straightener is lightweight and easy to use thanks to its micro platinum heater technology."

Issue

The Conair Group Ltd challenged:

1. whether the claim "Reaching a temperature of 210 degrees Celsius in six seconds" in ad (a) was misleading and could be substantiated because, when they tested the products themselves, they had found that they took three minutes to reach that temperature and

2. whether the claim "WORLD'S FIRST RECHARGEABLE CORDLESS HAIR STRAIGHTENER" in ad (b) was misleading, because they believed rechargeable products had previously been sold by competitors.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

1. Corioliss Ltd said the claim was based on a safety testing report on the technical specification of the product. They sent copies of two safety testing reports and the user manual.

2. Corioliss Ltd said other products describing themselves as cordless at the time the ad appeared used a docking station that plugged into mains electricity while in use and in which the tongs sat to heat up. They said the tongs began to lose heat as soon as they were lifted from the docking station and had to be replaced in the stand for a few seconds to heat up again to full temperature. They said their product was different, however, because it contained a battery which was recharged while the unit was plugged in at the mains, enabling it to be used in either mains-operated or cordless mode. They maintained theirs was the only product that was rechargeable and cordless in this way.

Corioliss Ltd said they had removed the claims under investigation in ads (a) and (b) from their ads.

Assessment

1. Upheld

The ASA noted the user manual referred to an operating temperature of 180 degrees Celsius but not the 210 degrees claimed in the ad. The first safety test report confirmed the device had not exceeded a maximum safe operating temperature, but did not state the operating temperature it had reached. None of the documents referred to the time taken to reach operating temperature. We concluded that Corioliss Ltd had not supplied evidence to prove the claims.

On this point, the ad breached CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation) and 7.1 (Truthfulness).

2. Upheld

We noted that other hair straighteners available both at the time of the ad and before it was published described themselves as being rechargeable from mains electricity and operated without using a docking station. We concluded that Corioliss Ltd had not supplied evidence to prove the claim.

On this point, the ad breached CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation) and 7.1 (Truthfulness).

Action

We welcomed Corioliss Ltd's assurance that they had removed from their ads the claims under investigation. We told them not to repeat the claims and to ensure they held adequate substantiation before making any future claims.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)