22-05-2025
Advertising watchdog upholds complaint against An Post for 'misleading' digital stamps ad
THE ADVERTISING STANDARDS Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint against An Post for an advertisement deemed to be 'misleading'.
The advertising watchdog published its complaints bulletin in which six complaints out of seven were upheld due to the promotion of misleading content.
The An Post ad in question was disseminated by direct mail and related to a recent campaign by the national postal operator which promoted its new digital stamps as alternatives to traditional physical stamps.
A complainant issued a claim to the ASA of misleading information against the advertised statement: 'Send anytime, to anywhere using An Post Digital Stamps'.
This was considered to be inaccurate as the digital stamps themselves expire six months after purchase, meaning consumers were not assure usage at 'any time' if their six months had passed.
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Another statement made in the ad that 'Post now has no limits' was disputed by the complainant, considering the six-month expiry issue places a clear limit on their rollout, as opposed to traditional paper stamps.
The ASA also upheld a complaint made against supermarket chain Aldi on the grounds of misleading information and concern about environmental impacts.
An ad promoting Burn and Glow Lignite Coal, which featured claims like 'they're also virtually smokeless and an environmentally friendly option', was 'unsubstantiated and false', the ASA said.
The claim that the product is 'environmentally friendly' was struck down, with the complainant pointing out the deleterious effect of fossil fuels on the environment by increasing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere when burned.
Further to this, the complainant cited information from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in expressing concern that fossil fuel burning could be advertised as an efficient way to heat a home when even 'smokeless fuels' are capable of emitting particulate matter which damages human breathing.
Other advertisers identified as having published misleading information include US real estate franchise Keller Williams, air conditioner manufacturer Daikin, BEO Wellness and Skinbae & Beyond Co.
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