Ad description
A TV ad for a repayment retailer. The ad began with on-screen text that stated "Caversham Finance ... 29.9% APR representative". After the on-screen text disappeared, the voice-over said, "At BrightHouse we're making life a little bit easier by giving you the things you need right now and letting you pay for them a little bit at a time either weekly or monthly. We offer quick and simple credit and a price match promise on everything." During the ad, gold coloured blocks appeared which morphed into household products.
Issue
The complainant challenged whether the ad was misleading because the APR was not sufficiently clear.
Response
Caversham Finance Ltd t/a BrightHouse said the ad did not contain an amount of money and did not display any financial information. They said because the ad did not contain an incentive or comparison information, it was not necessary to display an APR.
Clearcast said they had reconsidered the ad and accepted that the on-screen text with the APR would have been more relevant if it had appeared later in the ad when the voice-over mentioned payment options. They said due to time restrictions and the amount of on-screen text it would have been difficult to include all features. They said they had received confirmation from the advertiser before the ad was submitted that it complied with the Consumer Credit Act.
Assessment
Upheld
The ASA noted The Consumer Credit (Advertisements) Regulations 2010 (CCARs) stated that, where a credit advertisement included various trigger information, such as an indication that credit was available to persons who might otherwise consider their access to credit restricted, a favourable comparison of their terms of credit to other competitors or any incentive to apply for credit, the ad must specify the representative APR. The CCARs also stated the representative APR must be given greater prominence than the trigger.
We consulted the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) who said whilst the APR was clearly shown at the beginning of the ad, they believed the voice-over reference to "quick and simple credit" was likely to be an incentive to apply for credit, and that "either weekly or monthly [repayments]" constituted a comparative indication, and that both were therefore triggers which were given greater prominence than the APR. We agreed that the reference to "quick and simple credit" constituted an incentive to apply for credit and that the reference to the flexible repayment options was a comparative indication, because it implied a benefit available from BrightHouse that would not be available from other credit providers.
We considered that information given in a voice-over was likely to be viewed by consumers as more prominent than on-screen text at the bottom of the screen, and that on-screen text at the bottom of the screen was therefore unlikely to be sufficient if the trigger information was given in the voice-over. Although the representative APR appeared on screen at the beginning of the ad we did not consider that it was given greater prominence in the overall presentation of the ad than the trigger information ("quick and simple credit" and "letting you pay for them a little bit at a time either weekly or monthly"). We therefore concluded that the ad breached the Code.
The ad breached BCAP Code rules 1.3 1.3 Advertisements must comply with the law and broadcasters must make that a condition of acceptance. (Compliance) and 14.11 14.11 The advertising of unsecured consumer credit or hire services by consumer credit businesses or consumer hire businesses and / or credit brokering businesses or related credit services, such as debt counselling or debt adjusting is acceptable only if the advertiser complies with the financial promotions requirements imposed by FSMA and the FCA's rules set out in Chapter 3 of CONC.. The requirements for financial promotions set out in Chapter 3 of CONC do not apply: (a) where the credit is available only to a company or other body corporate (such as a limited liability partnership); (b) where a financial promotion is solely promoting credit agreements or consumer hire agreements or P2P lending agreements for the purposes of a customer's business; (c) to a financial promotion to the extent that it relates to qualifying credit or (d) it falls within the definition of an excluded communication as set out in the FCA's handbook. If the applicability or interpretation of these rules or provisions is in doubt, advertisers may contact the FCA. The FCA does not check financial promotions for compliance with the CONC rules before they are published. Such advertisements that involve distance marketing must also comply with the Financial Services (Distance Marketing) Regulations 2004 (as amended). Other distance-marketing financial advertisements are covered by the FCA Handbook. (Financial products, services and investments).
Action
The ad must not be broadcast again in its current form. We told BrightHouse to ensure the APR was given greater prominence than any trigger information in future. We advised them that if the trigger information was given by the voice-over in a TV ad, in general, it was unlikely to be sufficient for the representative APR to be included only in on-screen text.
