Misleading

A big part of our role is ensuring that ads don’t mislead. In fact, just over 70% of our work involves responding to and tackling concerns about misleading ads.

We should all be able to trust the ads we see and hear. And, in the majority of cases, we can. UK advertisers, by and large, stick to the rules. We only step in on occasions where an advertiser over-exaggerates, omits key information, or makes ambiguous or unclear claims in a way that’s likely to confuse or mislead us into making a purchase we wouldn’t otherwise have made.

The kind of complaints we receive about misleading ads often concern pricing and issues such as hidden costs like booking fees and credit card charges. We also receive complaints about exaggerated savings claims, significant terms and conditions not being made clear, promotions that aren’t run fairly, and health claims that discourage potentially vulnerable people from seeking professional medical advice or treatment.

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Latest rulings

Gary Baron
- Upheld
- Website (own site)
- 12 August 2026
A webpage for Gary Baron Counselling claimed that he was a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) when this wasn’t the case.
Nectar Sleep Ltd
- Upheld
- Website (own site)
- 12 August 2026
The homepage for the Nectar Sleep website made misleading saving claims and didn’t make the basis of their savings claims clear. They also made comparisons against other brands’ prices without ensuring the claims were based on the actual price of the product.
Airbrush
- Upheld
- 29 July 2026
Two paid-for Facebook ads and a website for a hairstyling company misleadingly implied they were endorsed by fashion brands, used unrelated influencer content to promote their product and didn’t have evidence to show that testimonials were genuine.
Bolt Healthcare Ltd t/a Bolt Pharmacy
- Upheld
- 29 July 2026
Two paid-for Facebook ads for an online pharmacy failed to make their commercial intent clear and falsely implied they were acting for purposes outside their trade by presenting websites used for advertising purposes as independent review sites. They also promoted weight loss prescription-only ...

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Misleading

A big part of our role is ensuring that ads don’t mislead. In fact, just over 70% of our work involves responding to and tackling concerns about misleading ads.

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