Ad description
A regional press ad. Headed “Maureen Bowman Master Hypnotist”, seen on 18 July 2015, featured the NHS logo in the bottom right-hand corner.
Issue
The complainant challenged whether the use of the acronym “NHS” misleadingly implied that the advertiser was endorsed by, or affiliated with, the National Health Service.
Response
Maureen Bowman t/a Maureen Bowman Master Hypnotist said she would remove the NHS logo from her advertising and would instead state that she was a member of the NHS Trusts Association (NHSTA) and listed on that organisation’s “NHS Directory of Complementary and Alternative Practitioners”. She said that, as a certified member of the Directory, she felt it was acceptable to refer to it in her advertising. She provided a copy of a certificate which stated that she had been accepted as a member of the NHS Directory of Complementary and Alternative Practitioners in 2008, which was signed by the Chief Executive of the NHSTA.
Assessment
Upheld
The ASA considered consumers would understand the use of the acronym “NHS” in Maureen Bowman’s advertising to mean that she was endorsed by or affiliated with the National Health Service. We considered we therefore needed to see evidence which showed that was the case.
We understood Maureen Bowman considered that because she was a member of the NHSTA and listed on its NHS Directory of Complementary and Alternative Practitioners, she was affiliated with the NHS. However, she had not provided any information to show that the NHSTA or its NHS Directory of Complementary and Alternative Practitioners were endorsed by, or affiliated with, the NHS. We noted that the NHSTA website stated that it was not a part of the NHS, but that it was an independent association of NHS Trusts. However, we had not seen evidence to support that claim. In the absence of evidence demonstrating that the NHSTA or its NHS Directory of Complementary and Alternative Practitioners were endorsed by or affiliated with the NHS, and therefore that Maureen Bowman was endorsed by or affiliated with the NHS, we concluded that the reference to the NHS in her advertising 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), 3.7 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) and 3.50 3.50 Marketing communications must not display a trust mark, quality mark or equivalent without the necessary authorisation. Marketing communications must not claim that the marketer (or any other entity referred to), the marketing communication or the advertised product has been approved, endorsed or authorised by any public or other body if it has not or without complying with the terms of the approval, endorsement or authorisation. (Endorsements and Testimonials).
Action
The ad must not appear again in its current form. We told Maureen Bowman t/a Maureen Bowman Master Hypnotist not to use the NHS logo or acronym in her advertising in such a way that stated or implied that she was endorsed by, or affiliated with, the NHS.
