ASA raps L\'Oréal over misleading deodorant ad
Claims in the UK press ad were found to be contradictory
The UK's Advertising Standards Authority has ruled that a L'Oréal (UK) national press ad for L'Oréal Paris Men Expert Shirt Protect 48hr Anti-perspirant deodorant must not appear again in its current form, after a complainant noted that the stated claims “anti-marks 100% all types of marks” – featured on the pack shot – and “helps protect against all kinds of marks” – featured on the right hand side of the ad – were contradictory.
The ASA noted that the claim “helps protect against all kinds of marks” would be interpreted by consumers to mean that the product was designed to help protect against all the types of marks identified in the ad, ie sweat patches, white marks, yellow marks and 'cardboard effect'. It noted, however, that the claim visible in the pack shot would be understand by consumers to be an absolute claim; it therefore considered the claims about the effectiveness of the product in the ad to be contradictory and likely to mislead consumers.
