Ad description

A tweet from the NetBet Twitter account, dated 28 May 2016, featured text which stated "ATLETICO MADRID to WIN 11/1 BET NOW! and an image which stated “ATLETICO MADRID TO WIN WAS 2/1 NOW 11/1 … MONEYBACK [SIC] IF YOU LOSE …BET NOW" and, in smaller text “T&C APPLY". The entire image was also a hyperlink to the NetBet website.

Issue

The complainant, who understood that a losing bet would result in a refund, challenged whether the claim "MONEYBACK IF YOU LOSE" was misleading.

Response

Cosmo Gaming Company Ltd t/a NetBet confirmed that the image in the tweet featured was also a link to the Netbet website, where the main terms of the promotion were displayed on a landing page. This included a link to the full terms and conditions, which set out all the details and requirements to qualify for the promotion. To take up the promotion, the customer (a new player) first had to create an account and enter the bonus code specified in the Twitter ad and the landing page. They then had to place a first bet up to a maximum of £5 on Atletico Madrid to win the game. If the bet was lost, they stated the £5 would have been refunded as a bonus amount, which could be used for subsequent bets. The terms and conditions specified that “Cash Back Bonus Credit must be rolled over 6 times (X6) at minimum odds of 1/6 and will expire after 14 days if not used”, which meant that the amount could be withdrawn as cash once the player managed to play the bonus and winnings on six occasions, at minimum odds of 1/6, and it would expire in 14 days if not used.

Because a tweet was significantly limited in space, the advertisers considered they had included as much information about the significant conditions as practicable. They added that they had directed consumers to the main conditions of the promotions on the landing page and pointed out the full terms were also available for consultation from the link on the page itself. The advertisers provided screenshots to illustrate the consumer journey.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA considered that consumers would understand the tweet’s claim "MONEYBACK IF YOU LOSE", to mean that they could make a bet on the Real Madrid versus Atletico Madrid match without risk, because if they lost the bet, their stake would be refunded to them and withdrawable as cash. However, we understood that a losing bet would result in their account being refunded with a £5 bonus bet, even when a higher amount was bet. We considered that that was a significant condition to the offer, of which consumers needed to be aware before they clicked on the “Bet Now” option in the tweet.

We acknowledged that the landing page, linked to from the ad, clearly stated “UP TO £5 BONUS IF YOU LOSE”, and that this condition was further set out in the terms and conditions linked to from the landing page. We considered, however, that there was sufficient space to include this significant condition in the initial tweet.

Because we considered that the tweet’s claim "MONEYBACK IF YOU LOSE" did not make sufficiently clear that any refund would initially be in the form of a bonus which could not be immediately withdrawn, or that there was a £5 limit on the amount which would be refunded as an initial bonus, we concluded the ad 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.  and  3.3 3.3 Marketing communications must not mislead the consumer 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 the consumer needs to make informed decisions in relation to a product. Whether the omission or presentation of material information is likely to mislead the consumer depends on the context, the medium and, if the medium of the marketing communication is constrained by time or space, the measures that the marketer takes to make that information available to the consumer by other means.
 (Misleading advertising), and  3.9 3.9 Marketing communications must state significant limitations and qualifications. Qualifications may clarify but must not contradict the claims that they qualify.  (Qualification).

Action

The ad must not appear again in its current form. We told Cosmo Gaming Company Ltd t/a NetBet not to claim that consumers would receive money back if the refund offered was not withdrawable as cash, and to ensure that tweets included significant conditions to their promotions.

CAP Code (Edition 12)

3.1     3.3     3.9    


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