These terms and conditions govern the provision of the Expedited Turnaround Service for bespoke copy advice to businesses (“you”, “your”). The service is provided under a contract between you and The Advertising Standards Authority Limited (“the ASA”, “we”, “us”, “our”), a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number 0733214) whose registered office is at Castle House, 37-45 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4LS, [email protected], VAT number: GB 843 5168 21. 

Bespoke copy advice under the Expedited Turnaround Service is provided by the CAP Copy Advice team of Committee of Advertising Practice Ltd (“CAP”), a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number 08310744) whose registered office is at Castle House, 37-45 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4LS, [email protected]. CAP is responsible for the provision and content of copy advice. The ASA administers the service, including invoicing, receipt of payments, processing refunds, and general contract administration, but is not responsible for the content of copy advice. 

The Expedited Turnaround Service is provided only to persons acting in the course of a business, trade, or profession.

By submitting an enquiry via the form at www.asa.org.uk (the Website) and selecting the Expedited Turnaround Service, you warrant that you are doing so in the course of a business, trade, or profession, and agree to be bound by these terms. 

1. Formation of contract

1.1 A binding contract is formed when you submit your enquiry via the Website and select the Expedited Turnaround Service. By submitting an enquiry, you agree to pay the applicable fee and acknowledge that the service will be provided in accordance with these terms. We reserve the right to decline any enquiry at our discretion, including as set out in clauses 3.5 and 4.1, in which case any fee paid will be refunded.

2. The Expedited Turnaround Service 

2.1 The Expedited Turnaround Service is a chargeable version of our standard copy advice service, providing:

(a) pre-publication guidance on whether material submitted to us is likely to comply with the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (the CAP Code);

(b) delivery of advice within the selected timeframe (4 hours, 24 hours or 48 hours), subject to these terms; and

(c) limited aftercare confined to reasonable email and telephone access to the adviser in respect of the original submission only.

2.2 The service:

  • applies solely to the material submitted in the original enquiry;
  • does not extend to revised, amended, or related material unless submitted as a new enquiry;
  • does not constitute legal advice;
  • does not constitute approval, endorsement, or clearance; and
  • does not bind us or the Advertising Standards Authority (the ASA) in any future assessment of the same or similar material.

3. Service timeframes

3.1 Working hours are 9:00am to 5:30pm, Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays in England (“Working Day”).

3.2 Four-hour service

The four-hour period comprises four consecutive hours within a Working Day.

If the four-hour period cannot be completed within the same Working Day, time will pause at 5:30pm and resume at 9:00am on the next Working Day.

3.3 Twenty-four and forty-eight hour services

The 24-hour and 48-hour periods run across Working Days only.

Where the response time falls outside Working Day hours, the response will be provided by 9:00am on the next Working Day.

3.4 Commencement of time

The applicable timeframe begins when:

  • cleared payment is received (or invoicing arrangements confirmed by us); and
  • we have received all information necessary to assess the enquiry in an accessible format.

If further material is required, we will notify you as soon as reasonably practicable, and the timeframe will commence only once we confirm that sufficient information has been provided.

3.5 Complex or unsuitable enquiries

If, in our reasonable opinion, an enquiry raises complex or novel issues such that it cannot appropriately be addressed within the selected expedited timeframe:

  • we will notify you promptly;
  • the expedited fee will be refunded in full; and
  • the enquiry will be dealt with under our standard service. 

Our determination under this clause is final.

4. Suspension or termination

4.1 We may suspend or terminate the provision of the Expedited Turnaround Service at any time with immediate effect by written notice to you where:

  1. you commit a material breach of these terms
  2. continued provision of the service would, in our reasonable opinion, conflict with, prejudice, or compromise our or the Advertising Standards Authority’s regulatory, investigatory, or adjudicative functions; or
  3. you fail to provide information reasonably requested by us within a reasonable timeframe.

4.2 Where suspension or termination occurs before the applicable expedited timeframe has commenced, we will refund any fee paid in respect of that enquiry.

4.3 Where suspension or termination occurs after the expedited timeframe has commenced, no refund shall be payable, except under the circumstances set out in b), in which case we will refund any fee paid in respect of that enquiry. 

5. Fees

5.1 The fees for the Expedited Turnaround Service are:

£600 (£500 + VAT @20%) for a 4-hour response;

£300 (£250 + VAT@20%) for a 24-hour response; and

£150 (£125 + VAT @20%) for a 48-hour response.

5.2 Where payment is made by invoice:

  1. an additional £25 administration charge will apply to the pre-VAT price; and
  2. payment should usually be made in full within fourteen days of the invoice date, unless we have agreed another period in writing.

5.3 If full payment is not received within fourteen days, subject to any other agreement we have made regarding the timeframe for payment, we reserve the right to suspend access to all copy advice services, including any free services, until full payment has been received.

5.4 Where payment is received following a suspension under clause 5.3:

  1. access to services will be restored; but
  2. we reserve the right to refuse to accept payment by invoice in respect of any future enquiries, and to require payment in advance.

5.5 Where payment by invoice has been made late on more than three occasions, we reserve the right to refuse access to the Expedited Turnaround Service.

5.6 Once an enquiry has been submitted, it may not be withdrawn or cancelled by you, and the applicable fee remains payable and non-refundable, except in the circumstances set out in clauses 3.5 and 4.1.

6. Information provided by you

6.1 You must ensure that all material and information submitted to us:

  • is complete, accurate and not intentionally misleading;
  • fairly represents the proposed marketing communication;
  • includes all information that may reasonably be relevant to our assessment; and
  • is submitted in a clear and accessible format.

6.2 By submitting an enquiry, you warrant that the information provided is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge and belief.

6.3 We are entitled to rely on the accuracy and completeness of the information provided. We accept no responsibility for any consequences arising from incomplete, inaccurate, or misleading information.

6.4 We are not responsible for any delay arising from your failure to provide adequate or complete information.

7. Nature and status of advice 

7.1 The Expedited Turnaround Service provides non-binding, informal guidance based on the information available at the time of assessment.

The advice:

  • reflects our view at the time of provision;
  • is confined to the specific material
  • may be affected by subsequent changes in the CAP Code or ASA decisions; and
  • does not fetter or bind us or the ASA in the exercise of any future regulatory or adjudicative function.

7.3 You acknowledge that you are responsible for your own legal and regulatory compliance and that you should seek independent legal advice where appropriate.

8. No endorsement or public statements

8.1 The provision of advice does not constitute endorsement, approval, clearance, certification or authorisation of any material, product, or service.

8.2 You must not state or imply that:

  • your material has been approved or endorsed by us;
  • or compliance has been formally confirmed by us.

Any such representation constitutes a material breach of these terms.

9. Intellectual property

9.1 All intellectual property rights in the advice and related materials remain vested in us.

9.2 You are granted a non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use the written advice for internal business purposes only and only in its complete and unaltered form.

9.3 You must not publish or disclose the advice externally without our prior written consent.

10. Liability

10.1 Our total liability arising out of or in connection with the Expedited Turnaround Service shall not exceed the fee paid for that service.

11. Events outside our control

11.1 We are not liable for delay or failure to perform due to events beyond our reasonable control. In such circumstances, the service will be provided as soon as reasonably practicable.

12. Confidentiality and data protection

12.1 We will treat your enquiry as confidential, and will not disclose that you submitted the enquiry or the details of it to anyone outside of CAP and the ASA, except where compelled to do so by law or a court.

12.2 Personal data will be processed in accordance with our Privacy Policy published on the Website.

13. General

13.1 These terms constitute the entire agreement in relation to the Expedited Turnaround Service. If any provision is held invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

13.2 A person who is not a party to these terms has no right under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any provision.

13.3 We may amend these terms from time to time. The terms in force at the time of your enquiry shall apply to that enquiry.

13.4 These terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. The courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction.