Regulation explained

The strength of the self-regulatory system lies in both the independence of the ASA and the support and commitment of the advertising industry, through the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP), to maintaning the high standards laid down in the Advertising Codes, which are designed to protect consumers and create a level playing field for advertisers.

 

Control of ads

The UK advertising regulatory system is a mixture of self-regulation for non-broadcast advertising and co-regulation for broadcast advertising. Find out more about regulatory system for non-broadcast and broadcast advertising, and how advertising in the UK is controlled.

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What we regulate

We deal with most types of ads but not all, but if we can’t deal with your complaint ourselves, we will try to help you contact the right body. We regulate sales promotions, such as special offers, prize draws and competitions wherever they appear. This section will tell you which types of ads we can deal with and which types of commercial message we don’t deal with.

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Our online remit

From 1 March, the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (the CAP Code) will apply in full to marketing messages online, including the rules relating to misleading advertising, social responsibility and the protection of children.

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Europe

As companies increasingly market their products and services internationally and people become more confident about shopping across borders you may see ad campaigns that originate from outside this country. To make sure consumers can trust the ads they see, the ASA helped to found the European Advertising Standards Alliance (EASA). EASA works to support and promote advertising self-regulation across Europe and operates a cross-border complaints mechanism. Find out more about making a complaint about an ad from overseas. 

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History of regulation

The UK marketing industry recognised the need for trust in advertising when it set up the advertising self-regulatory system for non-broadcast advertising in 1961. Since then, the UK’s system of self-regulation has helped to ensure advertising remains responsible: honest advertising helps to keep customers coming back. Read more about the history of the ASA.

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Working with others

Because the ASA regulates advertising across all sectors, it is unsurprising that we interact with many other regulators who have responsibility for looking after particular sectors more broadly. Read more about our relationships with other regulators. 

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