Background
Summary of Council decision:
Three issues were investigated, all of which were Upheld.
Ad description
A TV ad, a VOD ad and a video seen on the Toyota UK YouTube channel promoted the Toyota Yaris Hybrid.
a. The TV ad showed a number of different drivers and passengers singing and dancing along to "Locked Out of Heaven" by Bruno Mars whilst driving around urban, and often narrow, roads. The ad included shots of the drivers gesturing with their arms, and at one point a female driver appeared to have her eyes closed as she sang along. Half way through the ad on-screen text stated "THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DRIVING AND DRIVING HAPPY" and near the end a voice-over stated, "Fall in love with driving again with the New Yaris Hybrid ...".
b. The VOD ad, which was viewed on ITV Player, was identical to the TV ad.
c. The video seen on YouTube was identical to the TV ad.
Issue
1. Seventy-three viewers challenged whether ad (a) was irresponsible as it encouraged dangerous driving.
2. One viewer challenged whether ad (b) was irresponsible for the same reason.
3. One viewer challenged whether ad (c) was irresponsible for the same reason.
Response
1., 2. & 3. Toyota (GB) plc stated that while the setting for the footage was a real city − Prague − the road signs had been changed, and the roads were devoid of normal traffic, so the story appeared in an environment that did not depict normal driving circumstances. They said the roads shown were genuine roads similar to those in urban environments in the UK and did not suggest risk, a threat to safety or irresponsibility that was different from day-to-day driving for everyone on today's roads. As the Yaris was a small car, its ability to drive around relatively narrow streets was an important message. They also said the car adhered to the speed limit, there were no shots of it travelling fast, competitively or in a daring manner. In contrast, due to the nature of city driving, the car was constantly travelling at a low speed, which they believed was quite apparent.
They said they had tried to portray that both the driver and passengers in the car were having a good time whilst driving, as they wanted to dispel the myth that drivers cannot have fun whilst driving safely. They acknowledged that the ad included some arm movements, but highlighted that most of the movement came from the passengers and it did not show anyone with both hands off the steering wheel, and the drivers were in complete control of the cars at all times. They did not believe that any of the featured movements were dangerous or irresponsible. They said it was not a legal obligation to have both hands on the steering wheel in the UK, nor so far as they could ascertain, in the Czech Republic, and so to have one hand off the wheel was not necessarily unsafe. All cars had equipment that required one hand to come off the steering wheel from time to time, such as audio, signals, lights and window controls. They did not believe that the ad showed any of the drivers, female or otherwise, closing their eyes while driving.
Clearcast responded in relation to ad (a) only. They did not feel that listening to, or singing along to, music constituted a risk while driving, or that briefly looking away from the road constituted unnecessary risk. Drivers needed to check wing mirrors and look to the side when turning or reading road signs. Similarly, they said drivers needed to raise one hand from the wheel at various times during driving, such as when changing gear or activating indicators, so the brief gesticulations shown did not represent more of a risk than those movements. They could not see a female driver with her eyes closed. They said there was a driver with her eyes narrowed, but they were not closed. They also said it was important to note that because the ad was shot on the continent, viewers might have mistaken the passengers for drivers, as the car featured was a left-hand drive vehicle.
ITV, responding in relation to ad (b) only, said the ad was booked to run within an adult audience category. They said no viewers had complained to ITV Viewer Services, and they believed that the ad was perfectly suitable in the content in which it was placed. They highlighted that the TV ad had been cleared by Clearcast with no restrictions.
YouTube, responding in relation to ad (c) only, said it had been reviewed by the YouTube LLC and AdWords Policy teams, and did not violate their Community Guidelines or applicable Advertising Policies. They had not received any complaints about the ad directly. They stated that, under the terms and conditions agreed to by advertisers using AdWords, it remained an advertiser's responsibility to abide by applicable law and regulations, including the CAP Code.
Assessment
1., 2. & 3. Upheld
The ASA considered that while other road users and pedestrians were at a minimum, viewers would believe that the ad was set on real urban roads and reflected real-life driving conditions. We noted that a number of the scenes showed both drivers and passengers listening and singing along to music, while moving and dancing in their seats, and that in a few scenes the driver was shown gesticulating with one arm off the wheel or briefly looking away from the road to interact with a passenger. While we did not consider that to show drivers and passengers enjoying and moving around to music in a car was necessarily irresponsible, we had concerns that some of the drivers were not shown paying due attention to the road, and instead appeared to be easily distracted by their passengers and the music. In particular, we were concerned that most viewers would believe that the woman in the final scene of the ad had her eyes briefly closed while singing along, and therefore was not concentrating on the road, or any obstacles that could appear at a moment's notice.
Because we considered that some of the featured drivers were not shown paying due attention to the road, we concluded that the ad condoned and encouraged dangerous driving and was therefore irresponsible.
Ad (a) breached BCAP Code rules 1.2 1.2 Advertisements must be prepared with a sense of responsibility to the audience and to society. (Responsible advertising), and 20.1 20.1 Advertisements must not condone or encourage dangerous, competitive, inconsiderate or irresponsible driving or motorcycling. Advertisements must not suggest that driving or motorcycling safely is staid or boring. (Motoring).
Ads (b) and (c) breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 1.3 1.3 Marketing communications must be prepared with a sense of responsibility to consumers and to society. (Responsible advertising) and 19.2 19.2 Marketing communications must not condone or encourage unsafe or irresponsible driving. If it could be emulated, marketing communications must not depict a driving practice that is likely to condone or encourage a breach of those rules of the Highway Code that are legal requirements if that driving practice seems to take place on a public road or in a public space. Vehicles' capabilities may be demonstrated on a track or circuit if it is obviously not in use as a public highway. (Motoring).
Action
The ads must not appear again in their current form. We told Toyota (GB) plc to ensure their ads did not depict dangerous driving in future.
