Posted: 03rd May, 2006 By: MarkJ
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint against a radio advert for
Telewest's broadband service. The promo claimed that everybody within a "
Telewest area" could receive the offer, which wasnt true:
A Telewest phone customer was told that although he lived in a Telewest area they were unable to provide broadband or digital services in his area. He therefore believed the ad was misleading.
The ASA acknowledged the intention of "If you live in a Telewest area ..." had been to warn listeners that Telewest was not available nationwide. However, it had also implied that all listeners living in a Telewest area would be able to take advantage of the broadband and digital services on offer, but this was not the case; the offer only applied to Telewest digital areas. We considered this important restriction should have been explained in the ad and that "Conditions apply" had not been adequate to cover such a significant condition to the offer.