Ad description
A radio ad for confused.com featured the sound of a doorbell ringing and a dog barking in response. A computer-generated voice stated "Greetings to you too, Rex. I am Brian of confused.com." The dog barked at intervals whilst Brian stated "Oh, your master's out? Well, tell him he could save over £263 on his home insurance through confused.com ... What do you mean, he's going to need it? ... You've done what?! ... Oh, not on the Persian rug, Rex!". A different voice then stated "10% of customers saved at least £268 against their previous renewal price, October - December 2013".
Issue
The complainant challenged whether the ad misleadingly implied that consumers using the home insurance comparison service would be able to claim for damage caused by pets, because they understood that most home insurance policies did not cover that eventuality.
Response
Inspop.com Ltd, t/a confused.com, said in their view the ad did not mislead as to home insurance policy cover relating to pets. They stated that the pet scenario referring to damage to the Persian rug was used only as a comic backdrop to Brian's description of the savings that listeners could make on home insurance and did not imply that the damage to the rug would be covered directly by home insurance.
The Radio Advertising Clearance Centre (RACC) said they felt that the scenario within the ad was clearly a joke about the homeowner needing to make use of the claimed £263 saving in order to buy a new Persian rug, rather than meaning that he needed a home insurance policy that covered damage to home furnishings caused by pets. They pointed out that the question "What do you mean, he's going to need it?" immediately followed the statement "he could save over £263 on his home insurance through confused.com" and said listeners would therefore understand the meaning to be that the owner would need the £263 saving to purchase a new rug. They commented that it would be illogical to infer that an insurance policy was needed for damage that had already occurred.
Assessment
Upheld
The ASA understood that the ad primarily promoted the savings that could be made by obtaining home insurance through confused.com. We considered, however, that listeners would understand the exchange between Brian and Rex the dog that referred to the damage Rex had caused to the Persian rug and stated "What do you mean, he's going to need it?!" to be an exemplification of the type of future situation in which the home insurance could be used and, therefore, to imply that the home insurance available through confused.com would cover damage to home furnishings caused by pets. We understood that that was not commonly the case and therefore concluded that the ad was misleading.
The ad breached BCAP Code rule 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Misleading advertising).
Action
The ad must not be broadcast again in its current form.
