Who: The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and HJ Heinz Foods UK Ltd (Heinz)
Where: United Kingdom
When: 24 January 2024
Law stated as at: 5 February 2024
What happened:
The ASA has upheld a complaint against Heinz, alleging that the company omitted significant conditions of a promotion.
The promotion “FREE DAYZ OUT WITH EVERY PACK”, which ran on several Heinz Beanz products from 28 June to 31 October 2023, gave consumers the chance to apply for a variety of free events and activities across the UK.
Heinz said that the ad contained clear instructions on how to enter the promotion and, as it was “significantly limited” by space, it directed consumers to an easily accessible alternative source that contained all significant terms and conditions, if consumers scanned the quick response (QR) code or followed the website provided “on pack”, it took them to a form that had to be completed to redeem entry to the events and activities. Heinz said that the promotion’s significant terms and conditions were below the form and stated “UK, 18+. Opens 28 June 2023. Claim voucher by 31st October 2023. Use voucher by 31 December 2023, unless otherwise stated. One claim per product purchased. Maximum of two claims per person per day”.
The UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (CAP Code) states that promotions must communicate all applicable significant conditions where their omission would be likely to mislead consumers. The ASA considered that the promotion end date, eligibility criteria of 18-plus and the limits to the number of entries one person could make were all significant conditions which Heinz failed to include in the advertisement itself. The ASA considered that the ad was not sufficiently limited by time or space to justify their omission.
The advertisements breached rules 8.1 (Promotional marketing), 8.17, 8.17.1, 8.17.4, 8.17.4.a, 8.17.7, and 8.18 (Significant conditions for promotions) of the CAP Code. The ASA ruled that the ad must not appear again in the form complained of, and told Heinz to ensure that their future marketing communications included all significant conditions.
Why this matters: This ruling serves as a reminder to all promoters that they should ensure that they do everything within their powers to ensure the key conditions of a promotion are clearly stated on the ad itself since it is clear that the ASA will be strict on its interpretation of “ads limited by time and space”.
