Ad description
A TV ad for British Gas smart meters featured an animated explosion of blue lights, sending beams into various homes. One entered a family home hitting various appliances, including a gas cooker, toaster, kettle, television, radiator, lamp and a ceiling light. All the appliances were connected by the blue beam, which then shot into the smart meter and started to measure and calculate the energy usage in pounds and pence.
Throughout the ad, a voice-over stated, "At British Gas, we're upgrading our customers to smart meters. They help you stay in control of your energy, by letting you see what you're spending on things like appliances, heating and lighting, which could even save you money. Smart meters, you'll never see energy in the same way again. British Gas, we do more to look after your world."
Issue
The complainant challenged whether the ad was misleading, because it implied that the smart meter would display a breakdown of how much electricity was consumed by individual household appliances, which they understood was not the case.
Response
British Gas Trading Ltd stated that they took caution when considering the wording of the ad.
They said that the voice-over in the ad referred to the smart reader and stated "They help you stay in control of your energy, by letting you see what you're spending on things like appliances, heating and lighting, which could even save you money". They said that that wording did not specify individual appliances and referred to appliances in the plural as a generalisation.
Clearcast stated that when reviewing the pre-production script they understood that the smart meter provided consumers with a breakdown of what they would be spending on appliances and everyday activities that used gas and electricity. With that information consumers would get an overall understanding of what they were spending on appliances and heating as the voice-over suggested. Therefore, Clearcast considered that the voice-over along with the imagery did not imply that consumers would be able to specifically identify an individual appliance on the smart reader to find out how much it was costing them.
Furthermore, they said that the smart meter screen, while only shown briefly, was visible long enough to allow viewers to see the type of information that was shown on the meter, which included the amount being spent and consumed in total, and did not show itemised, separate appliances.
Assessment
Not upheld
The ASA noted that the beam hit various household appliances, and towards the end of the ad shot into the smart meter, which measured the total cost of energy use. We also noted that the voice-over stated that the smart meters "... help you stay in control of your energy, by letting you see what you're spending on things like appliances, heating and lighting". We considered that this illustrated that the smart meter would record a household's overall consumption of energy from both electrical and heating devices, rather than providing a breakdown of how much electricity was consumed by individual appliances. Therefore, we concluded that the ad was not misleading.
On this point we investigated the ad under BCAP Code rules 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Misleading Advertising), 3.9 3.9 Broadcasters must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that the audience is 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 3.12 3.12 Advertisements must not mislead by exaggerating the capability or performance of a product or service. (Exaggeration), but did not find it in breach.
Action
No further action necessary
