Misleading Adverts
General Advertising
Advertising in the UK is mainly controlled through codes of practice. In the case of advertisements in the non-broadcast media, The Advertising Standards Authority oversees and acts to ensure compliance with the British Code of Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing.
If the advertising industry is not enforcing its code of practice The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has additional powers to prevent the continued display or publication of the advertisement, by applying to the High Court for an injunction. In most cases the OFT will ask advertisers to change or remove the offending advertisement. For more information view the misleading advertising section of The Department of Trade and Industry website and the OFT website.
Package Holiday Advertising
A package holiday is one where accommodation and travel, (by air, sea, rail etc) is offered at an inclusive price. The law specifies specific information that must be provided by the organiser or retailer of the package in a brochure or advert. Below is a list of the information that must be provided in a brochure for package holidays:
1. The destination and the means, characteristics and categories of transport used.
2. The type of accommodation, its location, category or degree of comfort and its main features and, where the accommodation is to be provided in a member State, its approval or tourist classification under the rules of that member State.
3. The meals which are included in the package.
4. The itinerary.
5. General information about passport and visa requirements which apply for British citizens and health formalities required for the journey and the stay.
6. Either the monetary amount or the percentage of the price which is to be paid on account and the timetable for payment of the balance.
7. Whether a minimum number of persons is required for the package to take place and, if so, the deadline for informing the consumer in the event of cancellation.
8. The arrangements (if any) which apply if consumers are delayed at the outward or homeward points of departure.
9. The arrangements for security for money paid over and for the repatriation of the consumer in the event of insolvency. (This will be a bonding arrangement such as ABTA).
If you find a brochure featuring package holidays and any of these items are not clearly specified then please go to our Advice to Consumers web-page for further information on contacting Trading Standards.
Property Advertising
There are certain things that an Estate Agent must inform a consumer of before the sale of property is made. Giving incorrect information or failing to mention any of these things may be misleading.
Set out below are the items an estate agent must reveal in the course of business:
1. Location or address.
2. Aspect, view, outlook or environment.
3. Availability and nature of services, facilities or amenities.
4. Proximity to any services, places, facilities or amenities.
5. Accommodation, measurements or sizes.
6. Fixtures and fittings.
7. Physical or structural characteristics, form of construction or condition.
8. Fitness for any purpose or strength of any buildings or other structures on land or of land itself.
9. Treatments, processes, repairs or improvements or the effects thereof.
10. Conformity or compliance with any scheme, standard, test or regulations or the existence of any guarantee.
11. Survey, inspection, investigation, valuation or appraisal by any person or the results thereof.
12. The grant or giving of any award or prize for design or construction.
13. History, including the age, ownership or use of land or any building or fixture and the date of any alterations thereto.
14. Person by whom any building, (or part of any building), fixture or component was designed, constructed, built, produced, treated, processed, repaired, reconditioned or tested.
15. The length of time during which land has been available for sale either generally or by or through a particular person.
16. Price (other than the price at which accommodation or facilities are available and are to be provided by means of the creation or disposal of an interest in land in the circumstances specified in section 23(1)(a) and (b) of the Consumer Protection Act 1987[2] or Article 16(1)(a) and (b) of the Consumer Protection (NI) Order 1987[3] (which relate to the creation or disposal of certain interests in new dwellings)) and previous price.
17. Tenure or estate.
18. Length of any lease or of the unexpired term of any lease and the terms and conditions of a lease (and, in relation to land in Northern Ireland, any fee farm grant creating the relation of landlord and tenant shall be treated as a lease).
19. Amount of any ground-rent, rent or premium and frequency of any review.
20. Amount of any rent-charge.
21. Where all or any part of any land is let to a tenant or is subject to a licence, particulars of the tenancy or licence, including any rent, premium or other payment due and frequency of any review.
22. Amount of any service or maintenance charge or liability for common repairs.
23. Council tax payable in respect of a dwelling within the meaning of section 3, or in Scotland section 72, of the Local Government Finance Act 1992[4] or the basis or any part of the basis on which that tax is calculated.
24. Rates payable in respect of a non-domestic hereditament within the meaning of section 64 of the Local Government Finance Act 1988[5] or, in Scotland, in respect of lands and heritages shown on a valuation roll or the basis or any part of the basis on which those rates are calculated.
25. Rates payable in respect of a hereditament within the meaning of the Rates (Northern Ireland) Order 1977[6] or the basis or any part of the basis on which those rates are calculated.
26. Existence or nature of any planning permission or proposals for development, construction or change of use.
27. In relation to land in England and Wales, the passing or rejection of any plans of proposed building work in accordance with section 16 of the Building Act 1984[7] and the giving of any completion certificate in accordance with regulation 15 of the Building Regulations 1991[8].
28. In relation to land in Scotland, the granting of a warrant under section 6 of the Building (Scotland) Act 1959[9] or the granting of a certificate of completion under section 9 of that Act.
29. In relation to land in Northern Ireland, the passing or rejection of any plans of proposed building work in accordance with Article 13 of the Building Regulations (Northern Ireland) Order 1979[10] and the giving of any completion certificate in accordance with building regulations made under that Order.
30. Application of any statutory provision which restricts the use of land or which requires it to be preserved or maintained in a specified manner.
31. Existence or nature of any restrictive covenants, or of any restrictions on resale, restrictions on use, or pre-emption rights and, in relation to land in Scotland, (in addition to the matters mentioned previously in this paragraph) the existence or nature of any reservations or real conditions.
32. Easements, servitudes or wayleaves. (Rights or way or use promised to another).
33. Existence and extent of any public or private right of way.
Any Estate Agents failing to providing this information or making a false statement are potentially committing a criminal offence.
The use of Estate Agents’ boards making statements such as ‘For Sale’ or ‘To Let’ is a criminal offence if that property is not really on the market. This practice is known as ‘Fly-boarding’. Some rogue Estate Agents will often place these boards outside houses of multiple occupancy (flats) or a place not directly outside a property. The number of boards on display misleads consumers into believing that and agent is more successful than they really are. This means that law abiding traders are not able to compete fairly. As well as this, a proliferation of boards becomes and unsightly blight on the borough.
If you wish to make an enquiry or complaint about whether goods or services were accurately described in the advertising, or if you believe there may be some fly-boarding occurring in your community please see our Advice to consumers web-page for further information on contacting Trading Standards.
Further advice from the Trading Standards Institute is found below (the external website will open in new window):
