Ad description
Claims on a website, for a travel agent, in April 2011, stated "Attitude Holidays Ltd has been an IGLTA member since 2009 and prides itself on offering value for money services at the high-end of the gay travel market".
Issue
Mantrav International Group challenged whether the claim "Attitude Holidays Ltd has been an IGLTA member since 2009" was misleading and could be substantiated.
Response
Attitude Holidays Ltd submitted documentation that they said demonstrated that they had been a member of the IGLTA since 2009.
Assessment
Upheld
The ASA noted the documentation provided by Attitude Holidays. However, we understood from the IGLTA that Attitude Holidays had not been a member since October 2010. We therefore considered that the claim "Attitude Holidays Ltd has been an IGLTA member since 2009" had not been substantiated, and concluded that it was misleading.
The ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 3.1 Marketing communications must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Misleading advertising), 3.7 3.7 Before distributing or submitting a marketing communication for publication, marketers must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that consumers are likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation. (Substantiation) and 3.50 3.50 Marketing communications must not display a trust mark, quality mark or equivalent without the necessary authorisation. Marketing communications must not claim that the marketer (or any other entity referred to), the marketing communication or the advertised product has been approved, endorsed or authorised by any public or other body if it has not or without complying with the terms of the approval, endorsement or authorisation. (Endorsements and testimonials).
Action
The ad must not appear again in its current form. We told Attitude Holidays not to state that they were an IGLTA member, until such time as they were a member and held documentary evidence of their current membership.
