complaints...

The ASC receives all sorts of complaints from the public in regards to advertising. These complaints range in subject matter and are categorized by the type of infraction (falling under one of the 14 clauses of the Code). Lets look at some of the most recent complaints:

Complaint #1 - American Apparel

This complaint was filed in compliance with clause #14: unacceptable depictions and portrayals. The advertiser was American Apparel, an international clothing retailer. This particular complaint was regarding a magazine advertisement by the retailer in British Columbia. On the back of the free distribution magazine was an underwear advertisement that focused on the scantily covered behind of a woman, wearing nothing else besides the underwear, lying on her stomach on bed sheets. The complaint was that this ad was sexually exploitive of women. The ASC unanimously decided that the ad offended standards of public decency.

Complaint #2 - AIG Life of Canada

This complaint was filed in compliance with clause #1: accuracy and clarity (which appears to be the clause that most consumer complaints tend to fall under). A national insurance company, AIG Life of Canada, claimed in a television commercial that when a loved one dies, family members will have to pay for funeral costs and related expenses out of their own pockets. The complaint was that this advertisement was inaccurate because family members have no legal obligation to pay the debts of a deceased person. The ASC decided that this commercial did give inaccurate and misleading information and AIG Life of Canada made the necessary corrections due to the Council's conclusions.

Complaint #3 - Dell Canada

This compliant was filed in compliance with clause #1: accuracy and clarity. In a holiday season newspaper insert, a GPS navigational system was advertised at a special price. Two complaints were made in regards to this ad; the first was that the alleged product was not available for purchase, and the second was that the disclaimer text on the ad was too small to read. The Council found that although the ad contained a disclaimer stating that availability of the product may be limited, the text was in fact too small and therefore the ad held an inaccurate claim.



In my opinion, a lot of the time, people just like to complain; it gives them a sense of power and importance. While some advertisements can be genuinely offensive in nature, or potentially false in their claims, most are relatively harmless. Any thoughts???