Background
On 6 April 2025, the Advertising Codes were updated to reflect the revocation and restatement of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs - the legislation from which the majority of the CAP and BCAP rules on misleading advertising derived) by the Unfair Commercial Practices provisions in the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA). On that date, the wording of a number of the rules in the Advertising Codes was changed to reflect relevant changes introduced by the DMCCA. Given that the complaint that formed the subject of this ruling was received before 6 April 2025, the ASA considered the ad and complaint under the wording of the rules that existed prior to 6 April 2025, and the Ruling (and references to rules within it) should therefore be read in line with this wording - CAP code and BCAP code.
Ad description
A Facebook post by Amazing Giveaway’s [sic] Ltd, seen on 27 February, stated “With summer hopefully just around the corner, why not get involved with this Holiday Voucher Competition. For just £5 you could be walking away with a £3000 TUI holiday voucher. Please click the link below to get involved”.
Issue
The complainant, who believed they had won the prize draw but had not received the prize, challenged whether the promotion breached the Code.
Response
Amazing Giveaways Ltd stated that they were no longer operating. They stated that they had intended to withdraw the holiday voucher competition and that it was left live on their website in error. They stated that the complainant’s entry fee had been refunded, and that they could not provide the prize for a competition which had been advertised in error.
Assessment
Upheld
The CAP Code stated that promoters must award the prize as described in their marketing communications, or a reasonable equivalent, normally within 30 days. It also stated that promoters must ensure that their promotions were conducted promptly and efficiently and avoid causing unnecessary disappointment, or giving consumers justifiable grounds for complaint.
We understood that the prize draw was to win a £3000 holiday voucher. In order to enter, participants could purchase a ticket online or enter for free by post. The terms and conditions on the promoter’s website stated, “There is no minimum number of entries, and the Promoter will not hold void, suspend, cancel, extend the Closing Date or amend the prize competition due to a lack of entries. The draw will take place, and the Prize will be awarded regardless of the number of entries received”.
We understood that the complainant, who was listed on the advertiser’s website as the only entrant in the prize draw, believed they had won the prize but had not received it. They had contacted Amazing Giveaways, who stated that they had not intended to continue advertising the promotion and that the prize could not be awarded, as the number of ticket sales for the promotion would not cover the cost of the prize.
CAP guidance stated that any promoter that needed to generate sufficient revenue from the competition in order to fund the advertised prize was likely to breach the Code if they failed to sell the required number of tickets. Amazing Giveaways stated that, due to unforeseen circumstances, they had not intended to continue advertising the competition. Whilst we acknowledged the possibility that events outside of the promoter’s control might mean the promotion could not be carried out as originally intended, promoters were still responsible for the efficient administration of the promotion. We expected promoters to ensure that they had made appropriate preparations and had sufficient resources in place to run the promotion as planned.
We received no information regarding how the promotion had been administered, nor any evidence which showed that the prize had been awarded. We also considered that the entrant to the competition was likely to have been caused considerable disappointment. We therefore concluded that the promotion had not been administered fairly and was in breach of the Code.
The promotion breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 8.2 (Promotional marketing) and 8.14 and 8.15.1 (Administration).
Action
We told Amazing Giveaways Ltd to award the prizes as described in their marketing communications, and to do so in future. We also told them to ensure that their promotions were administered fairly and effectively in future and did not cause unnecessary disappointment or give consumers justifiable grounds for complaint.
