Background
Summary of Council decision:
Two issues were investigated, both were Upheld.
Ad description
A circular for Really Cheap Kitchens featured a picture of a kitchen and stated "THIS HI-GLOSS WHITE SLAB KITCHEN COMES WITH SOLID GRANITE WORKTOPS, OVEN, HOB AND EXTRACTOR PLUS SOLID BACKED CABINETS. THIS CAN BE YOURS FOR ONLY £795 COMPLETE. NO GIMMICKS - JUST QUALITY KITCHENS AT QUALITY PRICES!".
Issue
The complainant challenged whether:
1. the claim that the price was for a complete kitchen and included granite worktops was misleading and could be substantiated; and
2. the ad was misleading because it did not make clear that fitting was not included.
Response
Really Cheap Kitchens did not respond to the ASA's enquiries.
Assessment
The ASA was concerned by Really Cheap Kitchens' lack of response and apparent disregard for the Code, which was a breach of CAP Code (Edition 12) rule 1.7 1.7 Any unreasonable delay in responding to the ASA's enquiries will normally be considered a breach of the Code. (Unreasonable delay). We reminded them of their responsibility to respond promptly to our enquiries and told them to do so in future.
1. & 2. Upheld
The complainant said that when they tried to purchase the kitchen featured in the ad for £795 they were told that this price only covered kitchen units, and did not include granite worktops or fitting costs. They were also told that the worktops were made from laminate rather than solid granite. We had not seen any evidence that the kitchen featured in the ad was available for £795, and that it included solid granite worktops. We also considered that the claim "£795 COMPLETE" implied, in the absence of further qualification, that fitting costs were included in the price. We concluded the claims in the ad were misleading and had not been substantiated.
The ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules
3.1
3.1
Marketing communications must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.
and
3.3
3.3
Marketing communications must not mislead the consumer 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 the consumer needs to make informed decisions in relation to a product. Whether the omission or presentation of material information is likely to mislead the consumer depends on the context, the medium and, if the medium of the marketing communication is constrained by time or space, the measures that the marketer takes to make that information available to the consumer by other means.
(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
3.17
3.17
Price statements must not mislead by omission, undue emphasis or distortion. They must relate to the product featured in the marketing communication.
(Prices).
Action
The ad must not appear again in its current form. We told Really Cheap Kitchens to ensure that price claims were accurate and related to the product featured in the ad, and to state significant qualifications clearly. We referred the matter to CAP's Compliance team.
