Ad description
A page on the website www.affordablemobiles.co.uk, for a mobile phone retailer, featured the silver HTC One Smartphone. A box was ticked to show the product was in stock and a banner at the top of the page stated "Don't delay. ORDER BEFORE 7PM for FREE next day delivery".
Issue
The complainant, who had ordered the phone, challenged whether the ad was misleading because he did not receive it within the advertised time frame.
Response
Affordable Mobiles (AM) said the product had been in very short supply and in high demand when it was first released and that therefore they had struggled to obtain large amounts of stock for many weeks, which had resulted in delays for their customers. They advised that handsets were advertised as being in stock if it was already in stock or if they were due to arrive that day, even if they were likely to be allocated to customers who had previously placed an order. They told us that all orders were completed on a 'first come first served basis' and that the terms and conditions stated that products were subject to availability and that customers would be notified within two days if a product they had placed an order for was out of stock.
Assessment
Upheld
The ASA was concerned to note that it was possible for items to be displayed as “in stock” and available for next day delivery, even when the stock in question might not be sufficient to fulfil existing orders. We accepted that the terms and conditions stated that items were subject to availability, but we considered that this contradicted the claims that the product was in stock and available for next day delivery, rather than providing consumers with clarification, and we concluded that 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), 3.9 3.9 Marketing communications must state significant limitations and qualifications. Qualifications may clarify but must not contradict the claims that they qualify. (Qualification) and 3.27 3.27 Marketers must make a reasonable estimate of demand for advertised products. and 3.29 3.29 Marketers must monitor stocks. If a product becomes unavailable, marketers must, whenever possible, withdraw or amend marketing communications that feature that product. (Availability).
Action
The ad must not appear again in its current form. We told AM to ensure that products were not displayed as “in stock”, or available for next day delivery, if that was not the case.
