Ad description

A TV ad, for the Fiat 500, showed the cars driving down a beach in Italy and into the sea, followed by a scene in which the cars emerged from the River Thames next to Tower Bridge.  A voice-over stated, "Just arrived from Italy. The Fiat 500 spring/summer collection."

Issue

Four complainants challenged whether the claim "Just arrived from Italy" was misleading, because it implied that the cars were manufactured in Italy when they understood that was not the case.

Response

Fiat Group Automobiles UK Ltd (Fiat) said they were a long-established Italian vehicle manufacturer and the Fiat 500 was an iconic Italian design. The car was based on a design by an Italian designer working for Fiat in the mid-2000s [sic] as a modern copy of the original 1957 model, and all aesthetic decisions regarding the model's visual appearance, including colour specification, were under the direction of Fiat Italy.

Fiat said the aim of the ad campaign, of which the TV ad formed a part, was to focus on the car's style and design. They said that on-screen text "70's WEAR", "BEACH WEAR" and "SPORTS WEAR", which appeared in conjunction with images of different models of the car, represented a metaphorical translation of the range of models into clothing fashion language and therefore highlighted the design concept of the campaign. They considered the ad was therefore a parody of fashion design. In particular, for example, the text "SPORTS WEAR" was accompanied by footage of the sports model of the car. Fiat said the voice-over claim "Just arrived from Italy" was qualified by the statement "The Fiat 500 spring/summer collection", which was wording often used in connection with designer clothing or fashion, and which therefore indicated to viewers that the claim "Just arrived from Italy" referred to the design element of the cars. They said the style of the claim distinguished the ad from vehicle ads that focused on for example, a vehicle's production or its performance or engine size. They considered the ad was all about style and fashion and they believed that, in context, it did not imply that the advertised cars were manufactured in Italy.

Clearcast said they were under the impression the vehicles were manufactured in Italy as they had not been informed otherwise.

Assessment

Not upheld

The ASA considered that the placement of statements reminiscent of language used in the fashion industry alongside images of Fiat 500s meant that viewers would understand that the focus of the ad was the design and style of the cars. We considered that was particularly the case because most viewers would be aware that Italy was known for its fashion industry and many would also be aware that Fiat was an Italian company. We considered that, in the overall context of the ad, viewers would understand the claim "Just arrived from Italy" to relate to the design and style of the cars rather than being a claim about where the cars were manufactured and the claim was not, therefore, misleading. Notwithstanding that, we considered that even if the claim was interpreted to mean that the cars were manufactured in Italy, that interpretation would have been unlikely to have influenced consumer's decisions in relation to the product. We concluded the ad was not misleading.

We investigated the ad under BCAP Code rules  3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.  and  3.2 3.2 Advertisements must not mislead consumers by omitting material information. They must not mislead by hiding material information or presenting it in an unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely manner.
Material information is information that consumers need in context to make informed decisions about whether or how to buy a product or service. Whether the omission or presentation of material information is likely to mislead consumers depends on the context, the medium and, if the medium of the advertisement is constrained by time or space, the measures that the advertiser takes to make that information available to consumers by other means.
 (Misleading advertising),   but did not find it in breach.

Action

No further action necessary.

BCAP Code

3.1     3.2    


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