Note: This advice is given by the CAP Executive about non-broadcast advertising. It does not constitute legal advice. It does not bind CAP, CAP advisory panels or the Advertising Standards Authority.
The Code contains specific rules on marketing communications for motoring. The main requirement is that marketing communications for motor vehicles, fuel or accessories should avoid portraying or referring to practices that encourage or condone anti-social behaviour (Rule 19.1).
The rule that car marketers most frequently breach is 19.4, which states that, whilst marketing communications may give general information about a vehicle's performance such as acceleration and mid-range statistics, braking power, road holding and top speed, marketers must not make speed or acceleration claims the main message of their marketing communications.
Different ‘components’ of the marketing communication often need to be taken into account: the headline, visual or body copy can all singly or in combination cause problems. Sometimes an ambiguous or questionable headline can be redeemed by a visual of a stationary car or moderate copy claims. A Honda poster headlined "Bye Bye GTI" was judged to comply with these rules because it featured a stationary car and gave only general information about the capabilities of the car. The ASA ruled that the poster was unlikely to encourage motorists to speed or drive irresponsibly (ASA decision: Honda UK Ltd, 6 February).
A headline in itself, e.g. ‘Disappears quicker than a dot.com company’, can make speed the main message of a marketing communication and marketers should not rely on humour or less-obvious interpretations of the line to justify the approach (ASA decision: Hyundai Car (UK) Ltd, 19 September 2001). Marketers are unlikely to get away with approaches that combine blurred images (whether background, the vehicle itself or its wheels) and claims such as ‘Suddenly weekends are a blur again’ ‘Now you see it now you don’t’ and ‘Horizontal bungee jumping’ as these are likely to result in speed being the predominant message (ASA decisions: Jaguar Cars, February 2000; Peugeot Motor Company, Oct 1999; Mercedes-Benz (UK) Ltd, Sept 1999). Another problematic approach depicted a blurred image of a car on a road, a road sign showing a speed camera with a 300m lens and the claim ‘Blistering pace, smoother acceleration’; the ASA decided that that advertisement could encourage speeding and was irresponsible (ASA decision: Peugeot Motor Company, Sept 1999). Marketers should not, therefore, focus on speed and blurred images should be used only if, after careful consideration, they are thought unlikely to result in speed being the predominant message of the marketing communication when judged as a whole. Marketers may need to take particular care when shooting cinema commercials (Rule 19.3).
Marketing communications should not encourage motorists to drive irresponsibly or break the law (Rule 19.3 and ASA decisions: MG Rover Group Ltd, 8 Aug 2001; Lexus (GB) Ltd, 13 June 2001) or depict vehicles in dangerous or unwise situations in a way that might encourage irresponsible driving (Rule 19.2).
Marketers whose cars have a racing heritage should be particularly careful not to compare driving on race tracks to driving on roads as this might encourage some drivers to drive irresponsibly (ASA decisions: Vauxhall Motors, Jan 1999 and Nissan Motors (GB) Ltd, Sept 1997).
Safety claims should not be exaggerated (Rule 19.5) and marketers making environmental claims should see section 11 because there are separate requirements for marketing communications making environmental claims.
Lastly, marketers should avoid the temptation to give a low lead-in price but feature a model not available for that price; prices quoted should correspond to the vehicles illustrated and it is not acceptable to feature only a top-of-the-range model alongside the starting price for that range. It may, however, be acceptable to give both the starting price and that of the model featured if they are given equal prominence.
Marketers of car finance packages should see the separate entry for ‘Car Finance & Leasing’.
Last modified : 03 August 2010