Ad description

A TV ad for a Peugeot car package, broadcast in September 2011, showed a jigsaw puzzle of a car whilst the voice-over stated, "Choosing a new car can be a puzzle. That's why Peugeot have introduced a revolutionary 3 year package that includes 3 years' roadside assistance, 3 years' road tax, 3 years' insurance for those little unexpected moments, and 3 years' warranty and servicing (there you go good as new) all included for £179 per month. All you have to do is add the last piece - Just Add Fuel." The ad showed the last jigsaw piece with "JUST ADD FUEL" written on it, whilst text on-screen stated "£179 per month*". On-screen text throughout the ad stated "Excludes N.I. Eligibility criteria and terms and conditions apply. Vehicle colour shown is not available for purchase and used for illustration purposes only.*For a 207 Access 1.4 8v 75 3dr. 3 year lease initial and final rental payable, 35 monthly rentals. You will not own this car. Offer available on vehicles ordered and registered by 30th September 2011. Other models may be subject to a higher monthly payment. Terms and conditions apply".

Issue

A viewer challenged whether the ad was misleading because it did not make clear that a substantial initial payment was also payable.

Response

Peugeot stated that they did not consider the ad to be misleading because the text in the ad stated "You will not own this car", which made clear that the product was a lease contract for a Peugeot 207. They stated that the package was based on a standard lease contract, which was a financial product offered to consumers by most car manufacturers, and believed that a reasonably well-informed consumer would not be misled because that type of arrangement was standard practice. They provided three copies of ads by other car manufacturers to demonstrate that other manufacturers offered similar lease contracts. They said that they did not state explicitly that the initial rental payment was substantial because the constraints of a TV ad affected the amount of information they could provide. They had made the information available to the consumer by running a press ad that appeared prior to and in conjunction with the TV ad, which contained the information regarding the initial payment in the small print. They believed that was in line with the BCAP Code.

Clearcast stated that Peugeot confirmed that the deal was as described in the ad and that the car was available for £179 a month. Clearcast were aware there was an initial payment. However, they were not informed of the amount of the deposit.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA acknowledged that Peugeot ran a press ad that appeared prior to and in conjunction with the TV ad and that that referred to the initial rental payment in the small print. Nevertheless, we considered that the press ad was not relevant to viewers understanding of the TV ad because the two would be seen in isolation. We noted Peugeot considered that consumers would expect to pay an initial rental payment because that was standard practice with such lease contracts. However, we considered that the substantial initial rental payment (a minimum of £1,533 and a maximum of £3,105) was a significant condition of the offer which should have been prominently stated and, because it was not, we concluded that the ad was misleading.

The ad breached BCAP Code rules  3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.  and  3.2 3.2 Advertisements must not mislead consumers by omitting material information. They must not mislead by hiding material information or presenting it in an unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely manner.
Material information is information that consumers need in context to make informed decisions about whether or how to buy a product or service. Whether the omission or presentation of material information is likely to mislead consumers depends on the context, the medium and, if the medium of the advertisement is constrained by time or space, the measures that the advertiser takes to make that information available to consumers by other means.
 (Misleading advertising),  3.18 3.18 Price statements must not mislead by omission, undue emphasis or distortion. They must relate to the product or service depicted in the advertisement.    3.19 3.19 Quoted prices must include non-optional taxes, duties, fees and charges that apply to all or most buyers.  However, VAT-exclusive prices may be given if all those to whom the price claim is clearly addressed pay no VAT or can recover VAT.  Such VAT-exclusive prices must be accompanied by a prominent statement of the amount or rate of VAT payable.  and  3.21 3.21 Advertisements that quote instalment costs must state the total price of the advertised product or service and the instalment frequency as prominently as the cost of individual instalments.
 (Prices).

Action

The ad must not be broadcast again in its current form. We told Peugeot to ensure future ads made clear that there was a significant initial rental payment.

BCAP Code

3.1     3.18     3.19     3.2     3.21    


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