Ad description
An ad for a digital camera on www.kgbdeals.co.uk, seen on 14 February 2012, was headed "Disney iPad digital camera £49". Text below stated "value: £139.99 discount: 65%". Further text stated "£49 for a Disney iPad digital camera worth £139.99 from Sonic UK - save 65%".
Issue
The complainant challenged whether the savings claim could be substantiated.
Response
kgb (UK) Ltd (kgbdeals) said the value and savings claims made in the ad were based on the suggested retail price on the merchant's website, on behalf of whom they advertised the product. They said it appeared that the merchant did not sell directly to the public and, as a result, they were unable to confirm that they had sold the product for £139.99.
Assessment
Upheld
The ASA noted the ad stated the original price of the camera was £139.99, and that consumers would therefore expect that the product was usually sold at this price. We noted kgbdeals confirmed it was not possible to purchase the camera directly from the merchant and that they had not provided evidence that the product was usually sold for £139.99. We therefore concluded that, because kgbdeals had not substantiated the savings claim, the offer in the ad 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 3.17 3.17 Price statements must not mislead by omission, undue emphasis or distortion. They must relate to the product featured in the marketing communication. (Prices).
Action
The ad must not appear again in its current form. We told kgbdeals to ensure they held robust evidence to support savings claims when advertising offers.
