Harmful

All ads should be prepared with a sense of responsibility to consumers and society. They must not cause serious or widespread harm or use approaches that are likely to encourage socially irresponsible behaviour.

This includes not causing fear or distress without justifiable reason (and where justified, the fear or distress should not be excessive) and not condoning or encouraging unsafe practice.

We have upheld complaints about harm and social responsibility against a diverse range of ads including:

Alcohol – e.g. not encouraging excessive or unwise styles of drinking
Motoring – e.g. not encouraging motorists to drive irresponsibly such as at high speed or without a seatbelt
Health – e.g. not discouraging essential treatment of serious or prolonged ailments
Body Image – e.g. not encouraging an unhealthy diet or lifestyle including the depiction of extremely thin models

Particularly special care should be taken when ads are addressed to, or depict, children or young people. Ads that fall in to this category should contain nothing that is likely to result in a child’s physical, mental or moral harm and they should not exploit a child’s credulity, loyalty, vulnerability or lack of experience.

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Latest rulings

Amazon Europe Core Sarl t/a Amazon.co.uk
- Upheld
- Social media (paid ad)
- 10 June 2026
A paid-for Instagram ad for Amazon Fresh UK broke the rules by featuring an identifiable less healthy food product.
Dribble Media Ltd t/a Midnite
- Not upheld
- Social media (influencer or affiliate ad)
- 10 June 2026
A TikTok post on Mia Mon’s account promoting an online betting platform didn’t feature someone who was likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s.
Betway Ltd t/a Betway
- Not Upheld
- Social media (own site)
- 27 May 2026
An Instagram post for Betway featuring Thierry Henry wasn’t likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s.
Cyan Blue Odds Ltd t/a Oddschecker
- Upheld
- Social media (own site)
- 27 May 2026
Two Instagram posts for an online betting platform featuring Harry Kane and Erling Haaland were likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s.

View all rulings

Harmful

All ads should be prepared with a sense of responsibility to consumers and society. They must not cause serious or widespread harm or use approaches that are likely to encourage socially irresponsible behaviour.

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Latest rulings

Amazon Europe Core Sarl t/a Amazon.co.uk

Dribble Media Ltd t/a Midnite

Betway Ltd t/a Betway

Cyan Blue Odds Ltd t/a Oddschecker

Help getting it right

Popular advice

Food: HFSS Media Placement

Harm and Offence: Gender stereotypes

Harm and Offence: Sexualisation and objectification

Relevant codes