Holidays, travel and motoring

Helpful guidance on the advertising rules for ads about Holidays, Travel or Motoring, and examples of previous Advertising Standards Authority rulings in these areas.

When it comes to buying a holiday or a car, there is an array of consumer choice. There are dozens of comparative websites out there to make the decision easier but it is important consumers can trust all holiday, travel and motoring ads they see not least because their purchasing decisions can often be expensive ones.

Holiday and travel ads should ensure they don’t mislead consumers and should contain all non-optional taxes, duties, fees and charges that apply to most buyers in their quoted price. Holiday advertisers should ensure that their descriptions are accurate and the photos which they feature in their ads are representative of what’s being offered. They should also ensure they have evidence to back up any comparative claims they are making in their ads and proof of availability of an offer.

Motoring ads must also make sure they don’t mislead consumers but another important part of the advertising rules they must adhere to are those around social responsibility.

Adverts for cars must not condone or encourage unsafe or irresponsible driving, such as not wearing a seatbelt, or depict speed in a way that might encourage motorists to drive irresponsibly or break the law. Car ads are permitted to give general information about a vehicle's performance such as acceleration, braking power, road holding and top speed, but they cannot make speed or acceleration claims the main message of their ads or link speed with excitement.

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Latest rulings

Mercedes-Benz UK Ltd
- Upheld
- Internet (on own site)
- 21 June 2017
A website for Mercedes-Benz UK, www.mercedes-benz.co.uk, seen in February 2017, contained a page about their 4MATIC range – a 4-wheel drive system. Text stated “Driving performance. whatever [sic] the conditions”. Further down the page there was an image of a Mercedes Benz vehicle. Beside the image text stated “… Li...
Southall Travel Ltd
- Upheld
- Internet (on own site)
- 21 June 2017
Two results pages on www.southalltravel.co.uk for flights to Mumbai:
a. The first page, seen on 1 November, stated "Per Adult fr £443 ... Extremely Limited Subject to Availability".
b. The second page, seen on 16 December 2016, stated "Per Adult fr £346 ... Extremely Limited Subject to Ava...
We Buy Any Car Ltd
- Not Upheld
- Television
- 14 June 2017
Two TV ads for We Buy Any Car, seen in January and February 2017:
a. The first ad featured a man speaking to the camera about how it was possible to save time when selling a vehicle through We Buy Any Car. The man stated “I’m going to say something radical in this advert for WeBuyAnyCar.com. I might have got m...
Jet2.com Ltd
- Upheld
- Radio
- 31 May 2017
A radio ad for Jet2.com Ltd, heard between February and March 2017. The voice-over stated, “With Jet2.com you can choose from 58 amazing destinations including daily flights to Alicante, Faro, Ibiza, Malaga and Majorca. You can fly from as little as £42 - plus, enjoy a huge 22 kg baggage allowance. No wonder we’ve b...

View all rulings

Holidays, travel and motoring

Helpful guidance on the advertising rules for ads about Holidays, Travel or Motoring, and examples of previous Advertising Standards Authority rulings in these areas.

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Latest rulings

Mercedes-Benz UK Ltd

Southall Travel Ltd

We Buy Any Car Ltd

Jet2.com Ltd

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Relevant codes

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20 Motoring