Ad description
A website and claims on a Facebook page for Knights Templar International seen in December 2015:
a. The website www.knightstemplarinternational.com included a page headed “ANNUAL CHRISTMAS APPEAL” which had donation buttons. Large text stated “CHANGE A LIFE THIS CHRISTMAS Your gift will help a vulnerable Christian family escape persecution or death. Help those who need it today!”. Further text included “Every member, affiliate and supporter should feel called to do something. The Knights Templar International Order firmly believes saving as many persecuted Christians as possible is the kind of Christian charity we are called to carry out. It is the personal obligation and indeed a Holy duty binding all of us to help those less fortunate, especially those facing death simply because they follow Christ. We support people who are beaten, tortured, imprisoned, falsely accused, and hated simply for believing in Jesus.
This year we have a very special Christmas appeal to rescue a family who have a $50,000 death contract on them by Jihadists for helping us expose Islamic extremists in Europe and America. This young Christian family with two little children have had to leave their jobs, home and country to escape the Jihadist killers sent from Turkey to butcher them. Sarah and Peter and their children have survived up until now only by God’s Grace, but we need to get them to safety…NOW! … To donate now hit the buttons below”.
b. The Facebook page included a posted photo which stated “Will you help a Christian family this Christmas? Click The Link To Donate” and the text below included a link to ad (a).
Issue
Four complainants challenged whether the claims that donations would go towards helping the persecuted family referred to in the ads were misleading and could be substantiated.
Response
Knights Templar International provided documents relating to the family which they said the ad referred to, including a signed statement from a member of that family.
Assessment
Upheld
We considered that readers would understand from the claims in ad (a) that Knights Templar International were raising funds to help a specific family who were under threat, and that all funds raised would go towards that cause. We therefore considered that we needed to see evidence to demonstrate that was the case. Ad (a) included specific claims about the family, including that they were facing persecution or death primarily because of their Christianity, and that they had a $50,000 death contract on them by Jihadists for helping Knights Templar International expose Islamic extremists in Europe and America. It also stated that they had been forced to leave their jobs, homes and country specifically to escape jihadist killers. Although Knights Templar International had provided some evidence in relation to the family which they said they were raising funds for, that family did not appear to be facing persecution or death threats as a result of their religion or as a result of helping to expose Islamic extremists. They also did not appear to have been forced to leave their jobs, home and country specifically to escape jihadist killers. Ad (b) stated “Will you help a Christian family this Christmas?”, but did not make any specific claims about the circumstances of the family. We considered that Knights Templar International had demonstrated that the ad related to a particular family who did exist. However, we had not seen evidence to demonstrate that all the funds raised through the Christmas appeal would go towards that specific cause. We therefore concluded that the ads were misleading.
The ads breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 3.1 Marketing communications must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Misleading advertising) and 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).
Action
The ads must not appear again in the form complained of. We told Knights Templar International that when making claims in relation to solicitations for donations they should ensure that those claims were accurate and substantiated by documentary evidence, and that they should be able to substantiate that all funds raised would go towards that specific work.
