ASA Adjudication on Tricketts Ltd

Ad

A poster for Tricketts, a door and window installation company, featured a topless woman whose breasts were covered by door knockers. Text stated "WE SELL BIG KNOCKERS Window Hinges Door Handles Window Handles ...".

Issue

A member of the public, who believed the poster was demeaning to women and unsuitable for general display where children might see it, challenged whether the poster was offensive.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

Tricketts said the poster had been on display for a little over two months and in that time they received positive feedback from customers, who believed the poster was humorous. They said they had received only one complaint and therefore did not believe the poster was demeaning to women or likely to cause offence to the general public.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA noted that the text "WE SELL BIG KNOCKERS" was clearly a crude comparison between the womans breasts and the door knockers Tricketts sold, and that the image had clearly been chosen for that reason. We also noted the image bore no relevance to the products sold by Tricketts, a door and window installation company.

We considered that the image and text were likely to be seen to objectify and degrade women by linking their physical attributes to the advertiser's door and window products, and concluded that the image, in an untargeted medium where it could be seen by a general audience, and which bore no relevance to the advertised products, had the potential to cause serious offence to some consumers.

The poster breached CAP Code clauses 5.1 and 5.2 (Taste and decency).

Action

The poster must not appear again in its current form.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)