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ASA Adjudication on sit-up Ltd
sit-up Ltd t/a Bid TV
Unit 11 Acton Park Industrial Estate
Eastman Road
Acton
London
W3 7QE
Date: 11 December 2013
Media: Television
Sector: Retail
Number of complaints: 1
Complaint Ref: A13-245692
Ad
A teleshopping presentation on Bid TV for an 18-piece Viners cutlery set. The presenter stated, "Take a look at Viners. This is British tradition, craftsmanship at its finest. What we're about to show you is an 18-piece divine cutlery set ... It is not only the very heart of the Sheffield makers ... The heart of Sheffield, one of the most famous and one of the great cities in the world. What they've done, Viners have created the ambition of quality and design since 1901 ... To have quality cutlery in that drawer from the very heart of Sheffield ... it's Viners ... A quality set and I love it because it's British, it's Sheffield, it's Viners, it's quality".
Issue
The complainant challenged whether the presentation was misleading because they believed it implied the product was made in Sheffield when they understood that was not the case.
BCAP Code
3.13.23.9
Response
sit-up Ltd t/a Bid TV said that, having reviewed the footage, the complainant was incorrect because the presenter had not stated that the product was "made in Sheffield". They said the presenter was acknowledging that Viners was a British company that had a strong and deep British tradition, based in Sheffield. They said during the broadcast, the presenter reinforced the confidence and assurance that customers received when they bought the product and that they would be buying into all that the manufacturer stood for, that is, a British and Sheffield brand with a manufacturing tradition.
Assessment
Upheld
The ASA understood that Viners cutlery was not manufactured in the UK. We acknowledged sit-up's assertion that the presenter had not explicitly said that the product was made in Sheffield. However, whilst the presenter made several references that may have been interpreted as relating to the company's Sheffield heritage, we considered that statements such as "quality cutlery … from the very heart of Sheffield" and "it's British, it's Sheffield" were likely to give the impression that the cutlery was manufactured there. Because that was not the case, we concluded the ad was misleading.
The ad breached BCAP Code rules 3.1 and 3.2 (Misleading advertising) and 3.9 (Substantiation).
Action
The ad must not appear again in its current form. We told sit-up Ltd to ensure claims of place of manufacture did not mislead in future.
sit-up Ltd t/a Bid TV
Unit 11 Acton Park Industrial Estate
Eastman Road
Acton
London
W3 7QE
Date: 11 December 2013
Media: Television
Sector: Retail
Number of complaints: 1
Complaint Ref: A13-245692
Ad
A teleshopping presentation on Bid TV for an 18-piece Viners cutlery set. The presenter stated, "Take a look at Viners. This is British tradition, craftsmanship at its finest. What we're about to show you is an 18-piece divine cutlery set ... It is not only the very heart of the Sheffield makers ... The heart of Sheffield, one of the most famous and one of the great cities in the world. What they've done, Viners have created the ambition of quality and design since 1901 ... To have quality cutlery in that drawer from the very heart of Sheffield ... it's Viners ... A quality set and I love it because it's British, it's Sheffield, it's Viners, it's quality".
Issue
The complainant challenged whether the presentation was misleading because they believed it implied the product was made in Sheffield when they understood that was not the case.
BCAP Code
3.13.23.9
Response
sit-up Ltd t/a Bid TV said that, having reviewed the footage, the complainant was incorrect because the presenter had not stated that the product was "made in Sheffield". They said the presenter was acknowledging that Viners was a British company that had a strong and deep British tradition, based in Sheffield. They said during the broadcast, the presenter reinforced the confidence and assurance that customers received when they bought the product and that they would be buying into all that the manufacturer stood for, that is, a British and Sheffield brand with a manufacturing tradition.
Assessment
Upheld
The ASA understood that Viners cutlery was not manufactured in the UK. We acknowledged sit-up's assertion that the presenter had not explicitly said that the product was made in Sheffield. However, whilst the presenter made several references that may have been interpreted as relating to the company's Sheffield heritage, we considered that statements such as "quality cutlery … from the very heart of Sheffield" and "it's British, it's Sheffield" were likely to give the impression that the cutlery was manufactured there. Because that was not the case, we concluded the ad was misleading.
The ad breached BCAP Code rules 3.1 and 3.2 (Misleading advertising) and 3.9 (Substantiation).
Action
The ad must not appear again in its current form. We told sit-up Ltd to ensure claims of place of manufacture did not mislead in future.
