British Gas Ad Banned

www.britishgas.co.uk

An ad from British Gas, which was offering customers free gas for a year, has now been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority. The ad became banned after the company offered free gas for a year in exchange for a new boiler. However, the ad became challenged after a customer complained about the ad as being misleading.

The person that complained said that the redemption cheque was only about 73 percent of his gas costs. He went on to say that the ad was very misleading on how the deal actually worked. In response, British Gas said that they believed the ad made it very clear how the customer’s gas payment would be calculated.
The gas provider went on to defended itself by stating that the refund would be based on prices at the time of the offer, and did not cover the price increase of 15 percent that happened in January of 2008, and the price rise of 35 percent that happened in July of 2008. British Gas said that the ad is very clear about people getting paid for the amount of gas that they used, not the actual price paid.

Either way, the Advertising Standards Authority found in favor of the complainant, and thus, prohibited the use of the ad, saying that it is misleading. They ruled that the ad broke the CAP Code clauses 7.1 (Truthfulness), 27.4 (Unnecessary disappointment), and 3.1 (Substantiation).

This is not the first time that British Gas has been in trouble over an ad. They were in trouble for false advertising over the word “free” on a TV ad about boiler repair.

For more information visit: www.britishgas.co.uk