ASA bans price comparison advert – for being confusing

ADVERTISEMENTS for the comparison website Confused.com, including a TV version featuring the actor James Corden, have been banned for unsubstantiated claims about the amount of money customers could save.

The Google, email, TV, website and press advertisements claimed the website was “number one for car savings”, leading to a complaint from rival Gocompare.com that the message gave the impression that consumers would save more money with Confused.com than its competitors.

Confused.com said the advertisements did not claim it offered greater savings on individual products, and the number one claim included a qualification clarifying that it was based on “opportunities to save”. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said consumers would generally understand the claim to mean that they were likely to save more money by using Confused.com.

It said: “Because the market research provided did not support those interpretations of the ads, we concluded that they were likely to mislead.” The ASA ruled the advertisements must not appear again in their current form.

Confused.com said: “In response to the recent ruling by the ASA, Confused. com has amended its adverts.”