An advert for £7 cross channel ferry crossings has been banned as being misleading.
The advertising watchdog ruled against the banner advert by ferry website AFerry,
The advert for ferry tickets last August stated: “From Dover to Dunkerque from £7 … From Dover to Calais from £7 … From Dover to Calais from £8.”
The Advertising Standards Authority was alerted by a consumer who found that advertised prices were unavailable when attempting to buy tickets.
Banning the advert, the ASA said: “The ad must not appear again in its current form.
“We told AFerry to ensure that they held adequate substantiation to show that their quoted prices were based on genuine prices.
“We told them to state prominently when prices were subject to limited availability if that was the case, to state when prices were last updated, when those prices were subject to change, and to have processes in place to make sure prices were updated frequently.
“We told them to withdraw promptly or amend their advertising when prices were no longer available.”
The ruling published today said AFerry had not been able to demonstrate that the rates in the ads were based on a genuine price available. The advert should have stated that the prices were subject to availability.
AFerry told the ASA that it would ensure in future that adverts made clear that prices were subject to limited availability, were liable to change and were updated frequently.