Ad description
A leaflet for Digital Vapers, a vape retailer, seen on 4 November 2025, featured cartoon-style images of a yellow pineapple, a red and green slice of watermelon, and a green coconut on a pink and orange background. Each cartoon fruit had eyes and a mouth, and the watermelon was wearing sunglasses. The other side of the leaflet featured the cartoon-style pineapple and slice of watermelon on a pink and orange background. Both were smiling.
Issue
The complainant challenged whether the ad, especially the imagery, was likely to appeal particularly to people under 18 years of age and was therefore irresponsible and breached the Code.
Response
Digital Vapers said they had used an agency for the leaflet distribution: Leafletdrop. They said Leafletdrop had informed them that the leaflet was compliant and the design acceptable for delivery. Leafletdrop operated via Royal Mail, and Digital Vapers provided a copy of an email from Leafletdrop stating that the creative had been approved by Royal Mail.
Digital Vapers believed that displaying the 18+ restriction was sufficient to indicate that the products were intended solely for adults. The bright colours and cartoon-style fruit were intended to be light-hearted and humorous in tone, and the leaflet aimed at adult audiences only. They said that intention was reinforced by the 18+ marking and nicotine warning.
Leafletdrop said that Royal Mail had confirmed they would distribute the leaflet. They also said Leafletdrop's terms and conditions set out that the leaftet's content was Digital Vapers' responsibility. They submitted an extract from their terms and conditions that included the statement "You are fully responsible for the content of the items […] Even where We provide design or printing services, We do not provide any copy clearance or any other service relating to checking the contents of any item against any applicable standards or requirements".
Royal Mail Group Ltd said that they could find no record of having received a sample of the ad for approval prior to distribution or of having provided such approval. They also said that their terms and conditions placed responsibility for compliance with the CAP Code on the entity providing leaflets to them. Their terms and conditions stated, “You must not provide for delivery any Items which, in our reasonable opinion […] are banned or restricted by law or by any regulations or guidelines (including, but not limited to, the Advertising Codes)”. Royal Mail also said that their User Guide stated that “All items should adhere to the Advertising Codes of the Advertising Standards Authority and the Committees of Advertising Practice, which can be found at asa.org.uk”.
Assessment
Upheld
The CAP Code stated that marketing communications for e-cigarettes must be socially responsible and not likely to appeal particularly to people under 18. They should not feature or portray real or fictitious characters who are likely to appeal particularly to people under 18.
The ad featured brightly coloured, cartoon-style fruit characters: a yellow pineapple, a red and green slice of watermelon, and a green coconut, all with eyes and a mouth. Some were wearing sunglasses and thong-style flip-flops.
The ASA considered the colourful cartoon-style fruit characters, which had large eyes and were smiling, and therefore appeared endearing and friendly, resembled characters that might feature in a children’s book, television programme or film, and were likely to appeal more to children than those aged over 18. We considered the ad's bright colours, including the pink and orange background, contributed to that overall appeal.
For those reasons we concluded the ad was likely to appeal particularly to people aged under 18 and therefore breached the Code.
The ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 22.1 and 22.9 (Electronic cigarettes).
Action
The ad must not appear again in the form complained of. We told Digital Vapers to ensure their future marketing communications for electronic cigarettes did not appeal particularly to people under 18 years of age.
