A print ad for e-cigarettes appeared under an advertising feature about Stoptober (the English national stop smoking campaign). The e-cigarette ad was headed “Switchtober 2013” and featured a calendar page marked with the company’s logo: a match with a cross through it. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) found that the ad violated the country’s advertising code because it implied that the product could be used for smoking cessation when the product had not been licensed by the government for that purpose. In the future, the ASA ordered the company not to imply that its product was suitable for smoking cessation or associated with any stop smoking campaign.
ASA Adjudication on Dardam Services Ltd, Complaint Ref: A13-245512 (2014).
Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP Code), Edition 12, Rule 3.50 (Endorsements and testimonials)
Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP Code), Edition 12, Rules 12.1 and 12.11 (Medicines, medical devices, health related products and beauty products)
Limitations regarding the use of quotes The quotes provided here reflect statements from a specific decision. Accordingly, the International Legal Consortium (ILC) cannot guarantee that an appellate court has not reversed a lower court decision which may influence the applicability or influence of a given quote. All quotes have been selected based on the subjective evaluations undertaken by the ILC meaning that quotes provided here may not accurately or comprehensively represent a given court’s opinion or conclusion, as such quotes may have originally appeared alongside other negative opinions or accompanying facts. Further, some quotes are derived from unofficial English translations, which may alter their original meaning. We emphasize the need to review the original decision and related decisions before authoritatively relying on quotes. Using quotes provided here should not be construed as legal advice and is not intended to be a substitute for legal counsel on any subject matter in any jurisdiction. Please see the full limitations at https://www.tobaccocontrollaws.org/about.
"The ASA was concerned that, given the similarity between the phrases "Switchtober" and "Stoptober", consumers were likely to understand that the product was in some way associated with or endorsed by Stoptober, and that therefore they were likely to believe that the product was suitable for use as a smoking cessation device. ... Because we considered the ad implied that consumers could use the product for smoking cessation and we understood that the product had not been licensed by the MHRA for that purpose, we concluded that the ad breached the Code in that regard."
Limitations regarding the use of quotes The quotes provided here reflect statements from a specific decision. Accordingly, the International Legal Consortium (ILC) cannot guarantee that an appellate court has not reversed a lower court decision which may influence the applicability or influence of a given quote. All quotes have been selected based on the subjective evaluations undertaken by the ILC meaning that quotes provided here may not accurately or comprehensively represent a given court’s opinion or conclusion, as such quotes may have originally appeared alongside other negative opinions or accompanying facts. Further, some quotes are derived from unofficial English translations, which may alter their original meaning. We emphasize the need to review the original decision and related decisions before authoritatively relying on quotes. Using quotes provided here should not be construed as legal advice and is not intended to be a substitute for legal counsel on any subject matter in any jurisdiction. Please see the full limitations at https://www.tobaccocontrollaws.org/about.
A print ad for e-cigarettes appeared under an advertising feature about Stoptober (the English national stop smoking campaign). The e-cigarette ad was headed “Switchtober 2013” and featured a calendar page marked with the company’s logo: a match with a cross through it. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) found that the ad violated the country’s advertising code because it implied that the product could be used for smoking cessation when the product had not been licensed by the government for that purpose. In the future, the ASA ordered the company not to imply that its product was suitable for smoking cessation or associated with any stop smoking campaign.