Ad description
A TV ad, a radio ad, a poster and three national press ads for British Gas Services' same-day repair and next-day replacement boiler service.
a. The TV ad showed how a family's world could be affected by being without heating and hot water. The voice-over stated "We know being without heating and hot water can turn your world upside down. That's why, if you call before 1pm, we're committed to coming out to you the same day to start fixing it." On-screen text stated "Limited Service on weekends, public holidays & exceptional peak demand. Repairs may require further visits".
b. The radio ad stated "If being without heating or hot water turned your world upside down, how would you get out of the cold fast? Put on every item of clothing? Or just call British Gas? With HomeCare, if you call before 1pm, we're committed to coming out to you the same day ... Limited service during weekend, public holidays and exceptional peak demand".
c. The poster stated "With HomeCare, call before 1pm and we're committed to coming out the same day". Small-print stated "Limited service during weekend, public holidays and exceptional peak demand".
d. The first national press ad featured a man holding a boiler suspended from two parachutes on which was written "Emergency Installation". Text stated "Urgently need a new boiler? We'll drop in and start work the next day. If your boiler is completely broken, we know that you don't want to be left without any heating or hot water. Call us before 1pm and our new emergency installation team is committed to start fitting a new boiler the next day†". The claim was linked to small-print that stated "Limited service during weekend, public holidays and exceptional peak demand".
e. The second national press ad was headed "Being without heating or hot water can turn your world upside down". Text underneath stated "That's why with HomeCare we'll get you out of the cold fast. If you call us before 1pm we're committed to coming out to you the same day.† Sign up now for year-round peace of mind". The claim was linked to small-print that stated "Limited service during weekend, public holidays and exceptional peak demand".
f. The third press ad was headed "From just £13 a month HomeCare will take care of things so a boiler breakdown doesn't turn your world upside down". Text below stated "Now's the time to get HomeCare because we'll look after your boiler and help keep it running smoothly from just £13 a month for the first year. Plus, if you are without heating or hot water we're committed to getting out to you the same day, if you call before 1pm". The claim was linked to small-print that stated "Limited service during weekend, public holidays and exceptional peak demand".
Issue
1. 16 people challenged whether the claims in ads (a), (b) and (c) that, if customers called before 1pm, British Gas were committed to coming out on the same day were misleading and could be substantiated, because that had not been their experience.
2. One consumer challenged whether the claim "Call us before 1pm and our new emergency installation team is committed to start fitting a new boiler the next day" in ad (d) was misleading and could be substantiated, because his new boiler was not fitted until a week later.
3. E.ON Energy Ltd (E.ON) challenged whether the claim "we're committed to getting out to you the same day" in ads (e) and (f) was misleading, because it exaggerated the service and misleadingly implied a guarantee.
4. E.ON challenged whether the smallprint claim "Limited service during weekend, public holidays and exceptional peak demand" in ads (e) and (f) was unclear and contradicted the main claim of same day service.
5. E.ON challenged whether ad (f) made clear that other charges, such as labour and replacement parts, might apply.
Response
1. British Gas Services (BG) said they planned their operational resources, including significantly increasing engineer availability, so that they would be able to meet customer demand in a high percentage of cases even during bad winter conditions based on the type of severe winter weather that would not normally be expected more than once every ten years. They said they monitored the number of customer requests received and the number of requests met each day and checked the daily and future weather forecasts in order to ensure that they would be able to meet customer demand, because the weather was the most important factor in allowing them to predict job numbers. They said the campaign began on 14 October and was due to end on 19 December, but because of the sudden deterioration in weather temperatures on 28 November and weather warnings for the beginning of December, they ceased advertising the HomeCare service on 29 November as they believed that they might not be able to satisfy customer demand to the level they had set. BG supplied the ASA with Met Office data to show that the severe winter weather was the worst on record for nearly a hundred years.
BG provided the ASA with figures that they said showed that, up until 27 November, they had met same day requests to the high percentage they had set themselves. They also provided figures for the same period in 2009, which was in comparison a less severe weather period. They also provided figures for the period from 28 November onwards; they pointed out that the exceptionally bad weather affected not only the number of heating breakdowns, but the ability of their engineers to travel and to obtain parts, and therefore had a substantial knock-on effect on the service over a significant period of time after the weather improved. They believed that they had made the correct decision to stop advertising the service when it became clear that they would not be able to meet the standards they had set themselves.
Clearcast said they received substantiation from BG, which they believed showed that the service was available and achievable. They believed the claim “If you call before 1pm, we’re committed to coming out to you the same day to start fixing it” in ad (a) was not a promise to viewers, but a statement of intent. They said, although BG aimed to come out the same day and start fixing the problem, the ad did not promise that they would be there that day, or that the problem would be fixed that day. They said they chose the on-screen text, “Limited Service on weekends, public holidays & exceptional peak demand. Repairs may require further visits”, carefully to clearly state that there were some limited exceptions, and they had ensured that no promise was made in the ad.
The Radio Advertising Clearance Centre (RACC) said they accepted substantiation from BG that procedures were in place to deliver the advertised service to consumers and they saw the claim “We’re committed to coming out to you the same day” in ad (b) as a commitment rather than a guarantee.
2. BG said they set a high threshold to meet customer demand for the next day boiler installation service, which they said they met throughout the period the service was advertised, including during the severe weather. They provided the ASA with figures of the percentage of customer requests met.
3. BG said the intention of the campaign was to convey to consumers their clear business commitment to come out on a same day basis, provided that customers called before 1pm and had no heat or water. They believed that the claim was deliberately and clearly worded as a customer commitment and not a guarantee or promise, because they acknowledged that there would be occasions when they were unable to meet a same day service request for example when an engineer was delayed with another customer, traffic problems or poor weather conditions. They argued that the term “commitment” was clearly a statement of intent with the expectation that they would try and do everything they reasonably could to meet that commitment, and they believed that consumers would understand it in those terms.
BG said the ASA had previously accepted that the claim “We’re committed to calling ahead, letting you know we’re on our way” in an earlier BG ad would be understood to reflect a business commitment and company policy and would not be interpreted as an absolute guarantee that BG engineers would always call ahead in all cases. They believed a number of other advertisers used “commitment” as a statement of intent and not a guarantee. BG also said that their customer commitment claim had been approved by the CAP Copy Advice team on the basis that their high threshold was sufficient to demonstrate a genuine business commitment.
4. BG said the CAP Codes allowed smallprint or onscreen text to clarify claims in the body of an ad. They believed it was important to make clear to consumers that a more limited service applied on weekends and public holidays. They said, although it was implicit that a more limited service would apply during periods where demand was exceptionally high, they nonetheless wanted to state it clearly in the ad so that consumers would not be misled. They said the onscreen text “Exceptional peak demand” referred to something outside of forecast levels such as those occasions when they would have to offer a more limited service during exceptionally cold conditions when the number of boiler breakdowns would be significantly higher than usual and when it was physically impossible to get to homes because of the poor weather. It also included days when unexpectedly a vast number of boilers broke down.
5. BG said the purpose of ad (f) was to promote the HomeCare brand and product in general, rather than to promote individual features and benefits and focused on the most important points of the service. They said most parts and labour charges were included in the cost of a customer’s HomeCare package. They explained that the package offered a repair service for a customer’s boiler and any other appliances or systems a customer had selected to be included in their package. They said the only time a customer would be charged extra would be if they requested work or improvements not covered by their customer package, or for work on appliances or systems not included in the package.
Assessment
1. & 3. Upheld
The ASA noted BG set a high level threshold to satisfy same day call out requests and up until the November 28 they had met that target. We understood that the 2009 percentage figure for customer requests met had been higher, but also noted that the number of requests for the same period in 2010 had doubled, which appeared to account for the slight percentage fall compared to 2009.
We noted during the particularly severe weather BG had been unable to satisfy same day requests at the level set and the percentage figures dropped dramatically when the bad weather took hold and indeed took some time to recover. We also noted that BG had stopped advertising the service when it became clear to them that they would not be able to meet the level they set themselves for the same day service because of the harsh weather conditions and the resulting high demand, but considered that those customers who had already signed up on the understanding that they would be entitled to the same day service would still expect the same day service to be provided.
Notwithstanding the fact that, before the severe weather, BG had been able to provide the service to a high percentage of customers, we considered that the overall impression of ads (a), (b), (c), (e) and (f) was that a visit on the same day was a promise or guarantee, and not as BG argued their business intention. We noted the ‘committed’ claims were linked to an instruction to customers to call before 1pm, and we considered they were therefore likely to be interpreted as a promise to those customers who took action by the 1pm deadline.
We noted BG’s arguments regarding the previous ASA adjudication, but considered that it was clear from the ad in that case that the commitment to call ahead was a business commitment and company policy rather than a guarantee that they would do so. That ad had not included a call to action and advertised BG as a brand rather than any specific products. We considered that marketers needed to take extra care when using the term “commitment” or “committed” in an ad, because, although a claim of commitment to provide good service was likely to be understood to be an advertiser’s aspiration, a similar claim of a commitment to provide, for example the cheapest price or as in this case to meet a stated response time, would likely be understood by consumers to be a promise or guarantee.
We considered that claims, such as “We know being without heating and hot water can turn your world upside down. That’s why if you call before 1pm, we’re committed to coming out to you the same day ...” in ad (a) and “That’s why with HomeCare we’ll get you out of the cold fast. If you call us before 1pm we’re committed to coming out to you the same day” in ad (e)”, implied that in such a situation, BG would guarantee to be with the customer that same day.
We noted BG’s argument regarding CAP copy advice and noted that the CAP Copy Advice team had advised against the claim “See you today” and had approved the “committed claim” provided BG made the limitations clear. They had been concerned that the smallprint should not contradict the headline claim and had approved the “committed claim” on the basis that BG’s very high threshold was sufficient to demonstrate a genuine business commitment. We noted BG had followed that advice.
We also noted the ads included smallprint to explain the times when the offer did not apply, but considered that consumers would understand the smallprint to refer to exclusions to a guarantee, rather than simply a qualification to BG’s intentions and aims.
We acknowledged that BG had shown that they were able to provide the same day service to a high level before the severe weather, but nonetheless considered that consumers would understand the claims to mean that BG guaranteed to visit on the same day if contacted before 1pm. Because that was not the case, we concluded that ads (a), (b), (c), (e) and (f) gave an exaggerated and misleading impression of the same day service.
On this point, the TV ad (a) and radio ad (b) breached BCAP Code rules 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Misleading advertising). The poster (c), press ads ad (e) and ad (f) breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Misleading advertising), 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) and 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Exaggeration).
2. Not upheld
We considered the claim "Call us before 1pm and our new emergency installation team is committed to start fitting a new boiler the next day" would also be seen as a guarantee. We noted, from the figures provided, that BG were generally able to meet requests for their next day boiler installation service at a high level; for one month at nearly 100%. We also noted that even though the figure fell slightly during the period of the adverse weather conditions, they were nonetheless still able to successfully meet the high threshold they set for requests met.
Although 100% of cases would have been ideal in supporting a guarantee claim, because BG had been able to show that they were able to provide the next day boiler installation service in the vast majority of cases, we considered that the claim in ad (d) that, if contacted before 1pm, their emergency installation team would start to fit a new boiler the next day was not misleading.
On this point, we investigated press ad (d) under CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Misleading advertising), 3.7 3.7 Before distributing or submitting a marketing communication for publication, marketers must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that consumers are likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation. (Substantiation) and 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Exaggeration) but did not find it in breach.
4. Upheld
We noted the CAP Code stated marketing communications must state significant limitations and qualifications, but that those qualifications must clarify not contradict the claims that they qualify. We noted the small print in ads (e) and (f) referred to limited service on weekends and public holidays and considered that those claims clarified the main claim of same day service, and that consumers would understand that service was likely to be limited at those times. However, we understood from BG that they set the same high threshold to satisfy same day call out requests for weekends and public holidays as they did for weekdays and that up until November 28 they had met that target. We understood they had included the qualification because at the time the campaign was being prepared they could not be certain in meeting the target. We considered that, in this case, as the high target had been met, the qualification relating to limited service at weekends and public holidays had not been necessary.
However, we also noted the smallprint stated that there was a limited service during “exceptional peak demand”. We understood that that was a reference to something outside of forecast levels and included periods when the weather was particularly cold and more boilers were likely to breakdown, but considered this would not be clear to readers. We noted the precautions BG had taken to ensure that they were able to generally meet demand but, as had been proven by the extreme winter weather, we understood that there were occasions when the same day service was under pressure and BG could not meet demand. We therefore considered that because those occasions were likely to be the times when most people would need the service the claim “Limited service during ... exceptional peak demand” contradicted the main claim that a BG engineer would visit the same day and concluded that the ads were misleading on this point.
On this point, ads (e) and (f) breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (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).
5. Not upheld
We understood that the only time a customer would be charged extra for parts or labour was if they requested additional work not covered by their homecare package.
We considered that, because consumers would not have to pay for replacement parts or labour already covered by the HomeCare package, ad (f) was not misleading.
On this point, we investigated press ad (f) under CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Misleading advertising), 3.7 3.7 Before distributing or submitting a marketing communication for publication, marketers must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that consumers are likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation. (Substantiation), 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) and 3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so. (Exaggeration) but did not find it in breach.
Action
TV ad (a), radio ad (b), poster (c), press ads (e) and (f) must not appear again in their current form. We told British Gas to ensure that the same day service commitment was explained clearly
