Background
Summary of council decision:
Four issues were investigated, all of which were Upheld.
Ad description
A door-drop flyer and a website for Fischer Future Heat:
a. The flyer, seen on 6 June 2019, featured the text "Replace Your Outdated Heating Today ...". Toward the bottom of the flyer was the claim "CLEAN SYSTEM WITH ZERO CARBON EMISSIONS". On the reverse was the heading "aquafficient". Underneath that was the statement "Welcome to the new world of water heating … You can make a difference today and STOP using carbon fuels for a better world", followed by a number of further claims: "Heating water only on demand", "Solar PV and Heat Pump compatible", "No water storage", and "Energy Saving".
b. The website www.fischerfutureheat.com, seen on 17 June 2019, featured a page titled "aquafficient", stated "For many years, heating your hot water using electricity has involved the installation of a bulky, unattractive water cylinder. Water cylinders cost thousands of pounds to install and usually require yearly maintenance to keep their guarantee, which incurs further cost and inconvenience … With two temperamental immersion-heating elements within, water cylinders are an old-fashioned solution to an ongoing problem of trying obtain to [sic] instant water without the hassle of boiling yourself. This is not forgetting that the aforementioned elements can be prone to failure and usually only last 1-2 years".
Issue
The ASA received four complaints:
1. One complainant challenged whether the claim in ad (b) "water cylinders cost thousands of pounds to install" was misleading and could be substantiated.
2. One complainant challenged whether the claim in ad (b) "[immersion-heating] elements can be prone to failure and usually only last 1-2 years" was misleading and could be substantiated.
3. Three complainants challenged whether the claim in ad (a) "CLEAN SYSTEM WITH ZERO CARBON EMISSIONS" was misleading and could be substantiated.
4. One complainant challenged whether the claim in ad (a) “Energy Saving” was misleading and could be substantiated.
Response
1. Fisher Future Heat UK Ltd said water cylinders were generally priced at over £500, with some priced at over £1,000, and provided a link to search engine results that showed a range of different prices for domestic water cylinders, ranging from £168.52 to £1,090.74. They also provided a link to a boiler information website, which showed the cost of boiler installation as ranging from £1,775 to £2,150 for a heat only boiler.
2. Fischer Future Heat provided links to two retailers whose immersion-heating elements came with a one-year warranty. They said that was evidence that immersion-heating elements typically failed after one to two years. They also highlighted the words “can” and “usually” in the claim.
3. Fischer Future Heat said they provided the water system and did not provide the electricity to power the system. They said that consumers would interpret the claim to mean that the system does not directly pollute from the house, unlike gas boilers which they said directly pollute from consumers’ houses. They also provided a link to a page on the Energy Saving Trust’s website that stated heat batteries “can reduce … carbon emissions”.
4. Fischer Future Heat said the product in ad (b) had an A+ heat loss rating and that the product would result in major improvements in heat loss in most instances in the vast majority of consumer cases. They said that the rate of heat loss from the product range was between 17.7W and 39.1W and provided a link to a website for the Building Research Establishment Trust that showed the average heat loss from homes post-2007 was 5 kW.
Assessment
1. Upheld
The ASA considered that consumers would understand the use of the plural “thousands” in the claim “water cylinders cost thousands of pounds to install” in ad (b) to mean that they should expect to pay at least £2,000 for the installation of a new water cylinder, and potentially far more.
We noted that the link provided by Fischer Future Heat was for a website that offered free, impartial advice about boilers to consumers. The website stated that the approximate cost of installing a ‘mid-range’ boiler was £1,775 or £2,150, depending on whether the boiler was being installed in the same location or a new location, respectively. Neither Fischer Future Heat nor the website provided any information about the provenance of those figures, and we had not seen evidence indicating the typical range of installation costs. And, in any case, we understood that boilers and water cylinders were not one and the same.
We therefore concluded that the claim had not been adequately substantiated and was misleading.
On that point ad (b) breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 (Misleading advertising) and 3.7 (Substantiation).
2. Upheld
We considered that consumers would understand the claim “elements can be prone to failure and usually only last 1-2 years” to mean that immersion-heating elements in boilers would typically work for one to two years before they failed and needed to be replaced. We reviewed the retailers’ websites provided by Fischer Future Heat in substantiation for the claim but could not find information on either about the lifespan of the heating elements they sold. In any case, we did not consider that the length of retailers’ heating element warranties was relevant or adequate substantiation for the claim. We therefore concluded it was misleading.
On that point ad (b) breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 (Misleading advertising) and 3.7 (Substantiation).
3. Upheld
We considered that consumers would understand the claim “CLEAN SYSTEM WITH ZERO CARBON EMISSIONS", when read in conjunction with the statement “You can make a difference today and STOP using carbon fuels for a better world”, to mean that using Fischer Future Heat’s heating system would not result in the output of any carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. We noted that Fischer Future Heat’s system did not necessarily directly release emissions into the atmosphere in the way that other domestic boilers might. However, the system was powered by electricity – a source of carbon emissions. Because using the system would result in the output of carbon dioxide, we concluded that the claim was misleading.
On that point ad (a) breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 (Misleading advertising), 3.7 (Substantiation), 3.11 (Exaggeration), and 11.4 (Environmental claims).
4. Upheld
We considered that consumers would understand the claim “Energy Saving”, following the statement “You can make a difference today and STOP using carbon fuels for a better world", to mean that Fischer Future Heat’s system required less energy to operate than other, similar systems. We noted the technical document provided by Fischer Future Heat that showed the product range had an energy efficiency rating of A+. However, they did not provide any evidence that showed an analysis of how their system, tested in real world conditions over a period of time, functioned compared to other typical systems. We concluded the claim was not adequately substantiated and was therefore misleading.
On that point ad (a) breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 (Misleading advertising), 3.7 (Substantiation) and 3.11 (Exaggeration).
Action
The ads must not appear again in the form complained about. We told Fischer Future Heat UK Ltd to ensure that their future marketing communications did not mislead by making unsubstantiated environmental claims about their products, or unsubstantiated claims about heating system installation costs, heating system component longevity, and heating system carbon emissions. We also told Fischer Future Heat UK Ltd that future energy saving claims must be supported by adequate documentary evidence.
