A product which was advertised on social media as “Irish made”, but was shipped from China, is among a number of adverts found to be in breach of standards by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
The latest complaints bulletin – published on Tuesday by the ASA and the agency’s independent complaints council – upheld 15 complaints in full.
Two complaints were made against a company called Glaze Aura regarding a product marketed as “Irish-made”.
The complainants considered the social media advertising as misleading because, after placing an order, they noted that the product was shipped from China.
A second complaint was made regarding the product’s ingredients, as the product name on the label was “Woodsleep Tallow Honey Balm”, but the list of product ingredients on the label did not include any of those listed in the advertising.
The council upheld both complaints regarding the product.
Glaze Aura said the reference to the product being “Irish-made” was included in error during the early stages of setting up its product page.
The company said it had only been online for a short period and was removed as soon as they realised it could be misleading.
It confirmed that the product was not manufactured in Ireland and “apologised sincerely for the mistake and for any confusion caused”.
A complaint was also upheld against the VHI, the health insurer, as an advertisement on its website regarding cancer care featured phrases such as “complete support when you need it” and “with you every step of the way”.
The ad said “all your oncology treatment … will be fully covered by your VHI plan*” but the asterisk below the advert read: “*Benefits vary by plan. You can check those covered on your plan in your Table of Benefits in MyVhi.”
The complainant found the advertisement to be misleading as they considered the wording suggested that all cancer treatments, including their own, would be covered under a plan offered by VHI.
The insurer expressed “regret for any confusion experienced by the complainant” but stated they did not believe the webpage breached the ASA Code.
A complaint was also upheld against TonyBet for a gambling advertisement on video sharing website YouTube which depicted a man using his phone while sitting on the toilet, with the wording: “Only 3 per cent of people can do this. Make money while sitting on the toilet”.
The complainant said the advertisement claimed that gambling was “easy and was playing down the dangers of gambling”.
TonyBet said it took “immediate action” after reviewing the complaint and that it “urgently discontinued non-compliant advertisements with immediate effect”.
A separate complaint was upheld against TonyBet for an advertisement on YouTube which depicted a woman holding a baby and included text that said “it’s hard to pay my rent and take care of my babies”.
The woman was later depicted in the video with her thumb up and a text that stated “but I made $8,500 last month”.
One complaint considered that the advertisement had depicted gambling as financially beneficial.
The second complaint considered that the advertisement created the dangerous impression that gambling could resolve personal or financial difficulties and had targeted vulnerable individuals and perpetuated dangerous stereotypes.
TonyBet said the advertisement launch was not a deliberate action of the company but, a mistake of a third party employee. They said they were committed to the full compliance of advertising rules in Ireland.