John Lewis, Debenhams censored over Black Friday ads
John Lewis, Debenhams and Boots have been censored over “misleading” Black Friday ads after being accused of overstating the discounts on offer to shoppers.
The three retail giants have had their adverts banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), which monitors ads using an AI-powered tool.
The watchdog has been cracking down on retailers’ pricing claims in recent months, as looming inflation means shoppers feel more motivated to snap up deals.
Department store giant John Lewis was cautioned by the ASA over a paid-for Facebook ad for a MacBook laptop advertising a £150 saving and an online display ad for an ASUS laptop which claimed to include a £450 discount.
Debenhams was probed over two video banner ads, one which claimed to offer a 44 per cent discount on home products and another which advertised a 21 per cent saving on a hair styling tool.
The ASA banned an online ad by high street pharmacist Boots which claimed that a BOSS fragrance had been reduced from £80 to £60.
Retailers caught in ‘misleading’ ads
In each of these cases, the watchdog said it could not find evidence that the adverts offered a “genuine saving” against the usual price of the products.
Last month, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) found that UK retailers are using heavy discounting to push down prices as Brits’ consumer confidence weakens.
Emily Henwood, the ASA’s operations manager, said: “People rightly expect the deals they see around Black Friday to be genuine. These rulings send a clear message to retailers and brands that promotional events aren’t exempt from the rules.
Last November, the ASA took action against hotel firms Travelodge, Hilton and Booking.com over misleading claims about pricing.
A John Lewis spokesperson said the “misleading” price claims arose from two errors which were not spotted when the retailer lowered its prices.
“Our Never Knowingly Undersold price promise means we lower thousands of prices each week to match competitors – and this activity intensifies during the busy Black Friday period,” they said.
Customers targeted by ‘deceptive pricing’
A Debenhams spokesperson said: “Debenhams operates a marketplace model, where third-party sellers set their own prices and are required to comply with all advertising and pricing regulations.
“While we do not set or control this pricing, we have taken steps to reinforce our guidance and requirements for third-party sellers to ensure compliance with all advertising and pricing regulations.”
A Boots Spokesperson said: “We have robust measures in place to make sure that our promotions comply with the relevant laws and associated guidance, and we have taken learnings from this individual case of human error identified by the Advertising Standards Authority.”
Separately, the ASA said it has banned two ads by online retailer Very following a complaint from consumer protection firm Which?.
Sue Davies, head of consumer protection at Which?, said: “We find too often that customers are being targeted by ‘deals’ that are not what they seem. It’s clear that the current system is not fit for purpose and the government must tighten the law to ban deceptive pricing.”