ASA Adjudication on Brand New Cars 4 Less

Ad

A local press ad for a contract car hire company had the headline "Brand new cars 4 less". Text in a bubble underneath stated "All in stock and ready for immediate delivery" and further text below stated "BEAT THE CREDIT CRUNCH WITH THESE AMAZING PRICES! Available to individual and business users". The ad featured a picture of the following five cars along with details of the cost and rental period: "FORD FIESTA 1.25 Studio 3 door, 2 year contract hire ... £575 deposit inc VAT, 23 x £149.50 inc VAT; LEXUS IS 250 SR, 2 year contract hire ... £999.99 deposit inc VAT, 23 x £344.98 inc VAT; HONDA CIVIC 2.2 CTi SE 5 door, 2 year contract hire ... £862.50 deposit inc VAT, 23 x £299.98 inc VAT; MERCEDES B180 CDi SE 2 year contract hire ... £862.50 deposit inc VAT, 23 x £229.98 inc VAT; NISSAN QASHQAI 1.6i Visia, 2 year contract hire ... £862.50 deposit inc VAT, 23 x £229.98 inc VAT".

Issue

The complainant, who had been told that none of the featured models were available at the prices shown in the ad, challenged whether the ad was misleading and could be substantiated.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

Brand New Cars For Less said their prices were accurate at the time the ad went to press. They explained that the finance companies, which set the prices, would normally hold them for a period between three and six months, but that they had recently been holding their prices for a much shorter period. Brand New Cars For Less said the finance companies did not inform them when they changed their prices and they found out instead by regularly rechecking quotations. In the current economic climate those changes could be by as much as £100 per month. They could not advise when the prices for the advertised cars had changed and whether this was before or after the ad was published.

Brand New Cars For Less said it was not possible to withdraw the newspaper ads immediately when the changes in prices were made. They said, however, that they had instructed their call centre to inform customers that the advertised vehicles were no longer available at the advertised prices, but that they would offer a bespoke quotation on any vehicle. They said they had instructed the newspaper not to run the ad again and had issued an amended version of the ad that included the text "all prices correct at time of going to press". Brand New Cars For Less provided documentation that showed that customers had been able to take up the advertised offers prior to the publication of the ad.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA noted that the documentation provided by Brand New Cars For Less showed that some customers had been able to hire the cars featured in the ad for the advertised prices in the period before the ad was published. We considered, however, that that documentation was not sufficient to demonstrate that customers had been able to take up the advertised offer after the ad appeared. We noted that the finance companies changed their prices regularly and without notice, and we were concerned that, because prices could fluctuate on a daily basis, the advertised offers may not have been available at the time the ad was published. Brand New Cars For Less did not know when the prices of the advertised cars had changed and the complainant was told the offers were not available very soon after seeing the ad.

Although Brand New Cars For Less had offered to amend the ad to state that prices were correct at the time of going to press, we considered that that disclaimer did not go far enough to make it clear to consumers that prices could change at short notice. We considered that the ad should have included qualifying text that stated the date on which the advertised prices had been set by the finance companies, and that made it clear to consumers that prices could change at short notice. Because it did not, we concluded that the ad was misleading.

The ad breached CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation), 7.1 (Truthfulness) and 16.4 (Availability of products).

Action

The ad must not appear again in its current form.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)