Advertising Standards silence Churchill’s talking dog
by Gill Montia
Churchill is re-educating its talking dog after a customer complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) that the insurer’s long running television advertisement is misleading.
The advert features a cartoon of a talking bulldog, that can only reply “Oh yes”.
The ASA has upheld the complaint which centred on the question of whether customers can make a claim on their insurance without filling in any forms.
The need for completion of a form is in fact dependent upon the circumstances of the claim and Churchill does not make this clear in its advertisement.
In addition, the company is accused of having misled Clearcast, which is responsible for the pre-transmission examination and clearance of television advertisements.
The body had apparently made specific enquiries about the need for claimants to complete forms.
Churchill has now admitted that around 20% of claimants do complete a form and the ASA views this as a significant number.
A year ago, Churchill, which is owned by Royal Bank of Scotland, had a radio advertisement banned by the ASA, also for misleading consumers.
The bulldog has disappeared from the screen until an acceptable version of the advertisement has been produced.
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