Lidl has been rapped by the ASA over an ad claiming savings compared with Tesco, following a complaint by Aldi.
Two Lidl ads in Scottish newspapers last year compared the price of a selection of branded and own-label products at Tesco to claimed equivalents at Lidl, to arrive at a claimed saving of up to 35% by shopping with the discounter.
The Advertising Standards Authority upheld a complaint from Aldi that the ads did not make sufficiently clear the claimed savings related only to the specific selection of products shown.
Although small print stated the claimed savings were “based on these branded and own-brand goods at Tesco vs the cost of an equivalent product meeting the same need at Lidl”, the ASA ruled customers were likely to think they applied more widely, thanks to other text including “save over 35% at Lidl”, ”save over 30% at Lidl” and “at Lidl you can save a lot”.
Because the ASA had not seen evidence the general level of savings could ordinarily be achieved, it deemed the ads likely to mislead.
It rejected a separate complaint from Aldi that it was unclear whether the comparison was between branded versus branded goods, own-brand versus own-brand, or a mix of branded and own-brand goods.
As the ads were nevertheless deemed misleading, the ASA ruled they must not appear again in the form complained of.
“We told Lidl to ensure their advertising made sufficiently clear where savings claims, including percentage savings claims, were limited to a specific comparison,” the ASA said.
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