An advert by Gatwick parking firm purporting to offer secure locations with CCTV security has been banned as misleading.
The advertising watchdog took action after a customer complained that they believed their car was not parked at a secure location.
A website for Skylink Parking at Gatwick in March used text which said: “We ensure that security is a top priority at the car parks we offer, so you can rest assured your car is in good hands during your time away. Awarded with park mark, regular patrols and CCTV.”
Upholding the complaint, the Advertising Standards Authority said it considered consumers would understand ‘secure car park’ and ‘awarded with park mark, regular patrols and CCTV’ to mean that their car would be kept within a car park that was registered with the park mark scheme and was monitored by CCTV and human patrols at regular intervals across a 24-hour period, for the duration of their booking.
“We therefore expected to see evidence relating to the car park’s location, CCTV and human patrol schedule, as well as evidence of the car park’s accreditation with the Park Mark Scheme, the ASA added.
“However, we did not receive any evidence to substantiate the claims, and we therefore concluded that the claims were misleading.”
The ASA ruled that the advert must not appear again in its current form.
“We told Skylink Parking Services to ensure that they did not imply cars were parked at secure locations that had CCTV, were patrolled or were part of the Park Mark scheme or any other car park registration schemes unless they held evidence to substantiate their claims.”
In response, Skylink Parking Services said its car park was fully secure with a 24-hour manned presence and that it had updated the terms on the website.