Note: This advice is given by the CAP Executive about non-broadcast advertising. It does not constitute legal advice. It does not bind CAP, CAP advisory panels or the Advertising Standards Authority.
The ASA receives many complaints about the availability of flights at the prices quoted. On one or two occasions, it seems that the complainant was confused by the design or information available on a marketer’s website and, when challenged, the marketer was able to demonstrate adequate availability. More often, however, marketers are unable to show they had enough flights available for the lead-in price; consumers should have a reasonable prospect of obtaining a flight at the advertised price and should be given accurate information (Saudi Arabian Airlines, 19 May 2004, and British European, 14 April 2004). As a rule of thumb, marketers should be able to show that 10% of the seats available are offered at the ‘from’ or promotional price (easyJet Airline Co Ltd, 28 January 2004, and British European, 21 January 2004). Marketers must not exaggerate the availability of prices at the lead-in or promotional price. In April 2004, Ryanair were criticised by the ASA for wrongly implying that every seat on every flight was available for £10 (Ryanair Ltd, 21 April 2004). Similarly, Bmibaby.com (20 October 2004) were found to have wrongly implied that they were offering “loads of flights to Europe” for a lead-in price when only one destination was available at that price.
If flights are limited, marketers should convey that to readers by claims such as “Hurry – last few” or similar. If availability is unknown, that should be stated clearly. Back in 2002, the ASA upheld complaints about two advertisements because the marketers were unable to show that the advertised flights and holidays were available at the prices quoted (Flightbookers Plc, 3 July 2002, and Expedia.com Ltd, 18 December 2002). One marketer argued that, in the absence of a sale, it faced great difficulty in demonstrating availability of holidays and flights and could not show that roughly 10% of flights or holidays were available at the lead-in price. The Copy Advice team sought guidance from the General Media Panel, which concluded that if agents did not hold enough flights and holidays at the ‘from’ prices it would both undermine credibility in the sector’s advertising and disadvantage airlines expected to comply with the 10% rule if they were allowed to advertise ‘from’ prices. The Panel suggested the inclusion of a prominent disclaimer informing readers that availability was extremely limited. That suggestion was agreed by CAP members. If they do not know the availability of flights or if flights might be sold out by the time the ad appears (e.g. because other operators or sales channels mean that the marketer does not have control over supply), advertisers should include a clear statement to that effect (Expedia Inc, 29 September 2004).
See Help Note on Travel Marketing and entry on ‘Travel Marketing: Pricing and Free Flights’.
Last modified : 26 July 2010