The UK’s Advertising Standards Authority has upheld complaints made against claims in adverts from NRR Entertainment and EU Lotto.
The home page of NRR Entertainment’s Slotty Vegas website stated “our games pay more”, with a complainant challenging whether this claim was misleading and could be substantiated.
The ASA ruled that in the absence of evidence to demonstrate that their games paid more than the competition, such a claim was indeed misleading. The advert must not now appear again in its current form and the claim cannot be repeated, unless they hold “adequate evidence” to show that it is the case.
The website for EU Lotto last year stated “PowerBall £169 million”, with tick boxes allowing customers to choose to enter the next Thursday or Sunday draw or both, for one, two, four or eight weeks.
A complainant, who believed the jackpot total was subject to change depending on whether it was paid out in a single lump sum or in instalments, challenged whether the ad was misleading.
The ASA considered it was not sufficient to state separately from the ad, via help and FAQ links, material information that the jackpot value would always be reduced to take account of the tax that would be paid on the official lottery prize.
The ad was found misleading and must not appear again in the form complained of, with the ASA telling EU Lotto to ensure that in future the value of any prizes or winnings quoted included any non-optional deductions, while stating clearly and prominently any material information that would affect a consumer's decision to participate, such as how EU Lotto’s pay-out system worked.
