Ad description
Pages on the advertiser’s own website, two national press ads, a promoted Tweet, a TV ad and a radio ad seen and heard on 9 September 2022:
a. A webpage which stated, “The UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” and “why get iPhone 14 with our Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” and further text explaining, “How does it work?”.
b. A press ad in the Times stated, “iPhone14 Pro. Pro. Beyond” and an image of the phone. Text stated “On Vodafone EVO with the UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” and “Guaranteed buy-back price when you trade it in”. That text was linked by an asterisk to a footnote which stated, “Buy-back price: when you purchase iPhone 14 from Vodafone and trade it in (in good working condition) via our Trade-in Tool from 1.09.23 – 31.10.23 whilst upgrading to a new Airtime and Device Plan, you’ll get a guaranteed Buy-Back Price. Terms and verification: Vodafone.co.uk/buyback”.
c. A second press ad in the Times, which appeared diagonally below ad (b) on the same double page spread, stated, “Vodafone EVO now with “The UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” in bold text arranged in a circle. Further text stated, “Available on the latest phone” and “Search Phone Buy-Back Guarantee”. A footnote stated, “Find out more: Vodafone.co.uk/BuyBack”.
d. A promoted Tweet stated, “Pre-order iPhone 14 Pro … and we’ll guarantee a buy-back price when you trade it in. Price includes saving up to £312 when you trade-in and eligible iPhone using our Trade-in Tool”. Text below stated, “The UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” and “We’ll guarantee a buy back price when you trade it in”. It also contained the same small print as ad (b).
e. The TV ad featured scenes of nature and photos being taken and sent by phone. The voiceover stated, “The new iPhone 14 Pro … get it with the UK’s only phone Buy-Back Guarantee. Guaranteeing the buy-back price when you trade it in. Only at Vodafone.” On screen text stated, “Buy-back trade in Sept/Oct 23 via Trade in Tool. Trade in Checks apply. Terms, claim verification and info vodafone.co.uk/buyback”.
f. The radio ad stated, “See the world at its most beautiful with the incredible new iPhone 14 Pro. Get it from Vodafone today with the UK’s only phone Buy-Back Guarantee and get a guaranteed buy-back price when you trade it in.” Another voice stated the terms and conditions “Selected devices only. Trade in in good condition from September to October 2023 via our trade in tool. Airtime and device eligibility checks and terms apply. See Vodafone.co.uk/buyback. Credit by Vodafone.”
Issue
Sky UK, understood that Vodafone did not buy back devices in all circumstances and was not the only UK company to guarantee to buy back the phones it sold. They challenged whether the claim “The UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” was misleading and could be substantiated.
Response
Vodafone Ltd said the claim related to the price at which they guaranteed to buy back the advertised device, the iPhone 14, and did not feature in isolation in the ads. They said all the ads included further text which stated that it was the buy-back price that was guaranteed and consumers were directed to the buy-back guarantee section of the Vodafone website which gave full details of the terms of the guarantee. They said the ads did not claim that they would buy back phones in all circumstances and also made clear that the offer applied to phones traded in in September and October 2023 and that there were some exclusions. For example, they excluded phones that had been reported lost or stolen and believed that consumers would expect such exclusions and consider them reasonable. They stated the buy-back amount was offered as either a monthly saving on airtime or credit on the customer’s Vodafone account.Vodafone said they had committed, at the time the iPhone 14 phone was purchased, to honouring the buy-back prices quoted; the guarantee related to the price. They understood that the trade-in scheme offered by Sky (the “Swap Scheme”) did not guarantee the price offered to the customer because it was subject to market value adjustment, meaning that customers might not receive the buy-back price they were originally offered at the time the phone was purchased. Vodafone said they had compared their offering with all other UK mobile phone retailers and none of them guaranteed the future trade-in value.
They said the ads were clearly for the iPhone 14 and this meant that consumers would understand that the guarantee applied only to that phone. The circular stamp was used only in ads for the iPhone 14 and in relation to no other phones, so that would have been clear to any consumer. In addition, they said that if they had intended this to be a ‘brand-wide’ offer, the claim would have would have appeared more widely in ads for other models of phone. They said that consumers would understand this and that they had not received complaints that customers had misunderstood the offer, nor had customers expected the guarantee to apply to other phones.
They had carried out customer focus groups as part of their market research and surveyed a number of customers who had brought the iPhone 14. Respondents were given a written description of the Buy-Back Guarantee and asked to evaluate it. They were shown a partial version of ad (b) and asked to highlight which aspects of the ad they particularly liked or disliked. Vodafone said the research showed that most people understood that the guarantee related to price and that there was good consumer understanding that the word “guarantee” related to a trade-in price. When asked why they were likely to take up the buy-back guarantee offer, some customers had referred to upgrades and Vodafone believed that demonstrated that customers understood that they would not be offered cash.
In relation to the TV ad (ad (e)), Clearcast said that it was important to consider the ad as a whole and that they did not consider it claimed that Vodafone would buy back devices in all circumstances or that they were the only UK company to buy back the phones they sold. Clearcast considered that the TV ad made clear that the buy-back guarantee guaranteed that, when customers traded in their phone, they would receive the price they had been offered when they bought it. Clearcast believed that the on-screen text made clear the most important terms and conditions, relating to the phone’s condition and time limitations of the offer, and, in addition to this, consumers were directed to the website. They said they had seen substantiation that Vodafone was the only company to offer this type of guarantee because the Swap Scheme offered by Sky did not guarantee price.In relation to the radio ad (ad (f)), Vodafone said they had included the reference to selected devices in the terms and conditions to emphasise that the guarantee applied only to the iPhone 14.
Radiocentre said they endorsed Vodafone’s response, had seen evidence that Vodafone were the only retailer offering a buy-back guarantee on price for the advertised devices and had ensured that a qualifying tag was included in the radio ad.
Assessment
Upheld
The ASA noted the results of Vodafone’s consumer research, and understood respondents were limited to customers who had already bought an iPhone 14. We considered that was not sufficient to represent a general consumer base. Whilst the wording which described the offer in the survey was similar to the text used in some of the ads, there were differences in the wording and it was not presented in the same format or media, using the same visual elements.
We acknowledged that Vodafone did survey responses to a partial version of ad (b) but we understood the survey question related to which aspects of the ad respondents liked and disliked, and did not directly seek to establish whether respondents had understood the ad's intended message or the mechanics of the offer.
We considered that, in isolation, consumers would understand the claim “The UK’s only phone buy-back guarantee” to mean that Vodafone were the only UK company to guarantee they would buy back any mobile phones previously sold to Vodafone customers and that no other UK phone offered a similar trade in or buy-back scheme. We considered the claim in isolation would be understood in very general terms and as a brand-wide offer, although we acknowledged that consumers were likely to expect there to be some limitations depending on the condition of the phone; for example, it might not be eligible if it had been damaged or stolen.
We further considered that, in the absence of qualifying information, consumers were likely to understand “buy-back” to mean that Vodafone would exchange the phone for cash as well as credit, without requiring the consumer to make any further financial commitment to Vodafone. We understood there were other providers in the UK offering a general buy-back scheme, such as Sky's Swap Scheme.
However, we understood that the unique feature of Vodafone’s guarantee was that when a specific phone model was purchased from Vodafone, the amount of credit (offered on a future Vodafone purchase) customers would get back for trading in that model would be agreed at the time of purchase, as opposed to that amount being determined when a customer sought to trade-in their phone. We understood that, when the ads appeared, Vodafone’s buy-back guarantee applied only to the iPhone 14 model and only to devices which would be traded in during September and October 2023.
We therefore considered that the ads needed to make clear that "The UK's only" aspect of the claim related to a buy-back price being guaranteed on a particular phone at the time of purchase.
We noted that, in the ads, the claim “The UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” often appeared as standalone bold or headline text, or as circular text, which we considered had the appearance of a brand tagline or logo (although we acknowledged Vodafone referred to it as a stamp and it was not a consistent branding message intended for use across all their advertising). We also recognised that each ad contained further contextual and qualifying information, which was presented slightly differently in each instance.
The CAP and BCAP Codes stated that ads must not mislead the consumer by omitting material information and must state significant limitations and qualifications, and that qualifications may clarify but must not contradict the claims that they qualify. Because we considered that the claim “The UK’s only phone buy-back guarantee” itself would be understood in general terms and as a brand-wide offer, particular care was needed to ensure that any qualifying information in the ads clarified the terms and limitations of the guarantee. This was namely, that it related to a specific phone model sold to Vodafone customers (the iPhone 14 Pro), that the device was to be traded in within a specific future time period, and that the trade-in would be issued as credit on a future Vodafone purchase, and not paid in cash.
We therefore considered how the contextual qualifying information would be understood by consumers in each ad in turn and whether it was sufficient to clarify the basis of the “UK’s only” guarantee in the context in which it appeared.
Ad (a), a webpage, which at the top stated, “Phone Buy-Back Guarantee. Get iPhone 14 Now and we’ll buy it back for a guaranteed price next year helping you upgrade earlier” and, just below, “We’ll buy your iPhone back for a guaranteed price next year between 1 Sept – 31 Oct 2023”. Although we considered that this text made clear there was a guaranteed buy-back price for the iPhone 14 within a particular stated time period and also indicated the price was offered as credit on a future Vodafone purchase, the ad also featured the claim “The UK’s only GUARANTEE Phone Buy-Back” in circular text in the top right of the webpage, in its own separate section. We considered that text had the appearance of a brand tagline or logo. Because the claim in circular text was standalone and prominent and was not linked to any other text, we considered some consumers would not understand that the guarantee was restricted to the iPhone 14 and might infer that it was a brand-wide offer, which also applied to other phone devices sold by Vodafone. We also noted the ad did not expressly state that the guarantee was only available with the iPhone 14 and that other Vodafone phones were not included in “the UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee”. On that basis, we concluded that ad (a) was likely to mislead.
We understood that the press ads (ads (b) and (c)) always appeared on the same double page spread, alongside news articles. We therefore considered them together.
We considered that consumers would understand ad (b) was primarily promoting a Vodafone contract for the iPhone 14 Pro, as it featured a close-up of the phone and was headlined “iPhone 14 Pro. Pro. Beyond”. The guarantee was referenced in smaller text below, “On Vodafone EVO with the UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee”, and further text stated, “Guaranteed buy-back price when you trade it in” and “… when you trade in an eligible iPhone using our Trade-in Tool”. Smaller print at the bottom of the ad stated, “Buy-Back Price: When you purchase iPhone 14 from Vodafone, and trade it in (in good working condition) via our Trade-in Tool from 1.09.23 – 31.10 23 whilst upgrading to a new Airtime and Device Plan, you’ll get a guaranteed Buy-Back Price” and gave a link to the Vodafone website and further terms. We considered that this additional information set out the relevant terms and limitations of the guarantee and contributed to the impression that the “UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” related to the iPhone 14 Pro only, as opposed to being a more general guarantee, available on other Vodafone devices. However, the ad did not expressly state that the guarantee was only available with the iPhone 14 and that other Vodafone phones were not included in the “UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee”.
In ad (c) the claim “The UK’s only GUARANTEE Phone Buy-Back” appeared in a large circular text, which we considered had the appearance of a logo or brand tagline and was likely to be understood in general terms and as a brand-wide offer. Although the ad stated, “Available on the latest phone” and provided links to further information, we did not consider that was sufficient for consumers to understand the limitations of the “UK’s only GUARANTEE Phone Buy-Back”, namely that the guarantee related only to one phone model sold to Vodafone customers, which was to be traded in within a specific future time period and that the trade-in would be issued as credit on a future Vodafone purchase, and not cash. We considered “Available on the latest phone” would be taken to mean that the guarantee also included the most recently produced phone model (which was unspecified), not that the guarantee only related to the latest phone model.
Although ad (b) included detail which explained the terms and limitations of the guarantee, we considered that, particularly when seen in conjunction with ad (c), it was not sufficient to clarify the wider impression, given by both press ads together, that the “UK’s only GUARANTEE Phone Buy-Back” was an offer which related to any mobile phones previously sold to Vodafone customers and that no other UK phone provider offered a similar trade-in or buy-back scheme. We therefore considered that ads (b) and (c) were likely to mislead.
We considered that ad (d), a promoted tweet, was primarily promoting a Vodafone contract for the iPhone 14 Pro. We acknowledged that ad (d) stated, “Pre-order iPhone 14 Pro with its 48MP camera and we’ll guarantee a buy-back price when you trade it in”, which linked to further explanatory small print. That information was set out in the terms and limitations of the “The UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” and we considered it would help contribute to the impression that the guarantee was only available with the iPhone 14 Pro, rather than being a more general offering available on other Vodafone devices. However, the claim “With the UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” also appeared below in a separate red box and was repeated in a circular text, which had the appearance of a brand tagline or logo. We considered that presentation reinforced the impression that whilst the guarantee certainly applied to the iPhone 14, it could also be applied more widely, and was available on all Vodafone devices. The ad did not expressly state that the guarantee was only available with the iPhone 14 or that other Vodafone phones were not included in “the UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee”. Because we considered the overall impression was ambiguous and did not sufficiently clarify the terms and limitations of the guarantee, we considered that ad (d) was likely to mislead.
We considered that ad (e), a TV ad, was primarily promoting the iPhone 14 Pro’s camera function, which viewers would understand from the ad was available with a Vodafone contract. We acknowledged that the voiceover stated, “The new iPhone 14 pro, with a massively pro camera system, get it with the UK’s only phone Buy-Back Guarantee, guaranteeing the buy-back price when you trade it in” and considered that there was no obvious pause in the delivery of that line. However, the on-screen image featured the claim “With the UK’s only Phone Buy-Back Guarantee” in circular text, which had the appearance of a brand tagline or logo, on a red screen. We considered that reinforced the impression that whilst the guarantee certainly applied to the iPhone 14, it could also be applied more widely, and was available on other Vodafone devices. We acknowledged that on-screen text provided further information “Buy-back trade in Sept/Oct 23 via Trade in Tool. Trade in Checks apply. Terms, claim verification and info vodafone.co.uk/buyback. Credit Vodafone”, but we did not consider that, in the context of a TV ad, the information was sufficiently prominently placed and considered it was not sufficient to make clear that “the UK’s only phone Buy-Back Guarantee” offered a fixed buy-back price for the iPhone 14 only, did not apply to other phones, and was offered in credit only. We therefore considered that ad (e) was likely to mislead.
We considered that ad (f), a radio ad, was primarily promoting the iPhone 14 Pro and its camera function, which viewers would understand from the ad was available with a Vodafone contract. We acknowledged that the ad stated, “See the world at its most beautiful with the incredible new iPhone 14 Pro. Get it from Vodafone today with the UK’s only phone Buy-Back Guarantee and get a guaranteed buy-back price when you trade it in” and that there were no obvious pauses in the delivery of that line. The ad also stated, “Trade in in good condition from September to October 2023 via our trade in tool. Airtime and device eligibility checks and terms apply. See Vodafone.co.uk/buyback. Credit by Vodafone”, which provided further information about the terms and limitations of “the UK’s only phone Buy-Back Guarantee”. Although we understood the guarantee was only available with the iPhone 14, we noted the ad also referred to “Selected devices only” and considered that rendered the nature of the guarantee ambiguous so that some listeners would have inferred that “the UK’s only phone Buy-Back Guarantee” applied to other devices from Vodafone, which we understood was not the case. We therefore considered that ad (f) was likely to mislead.
Ads (a), (b), (c) and (d) breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1, 3.3 (Misleading advertising), 3.7 (Substantiation), 3.9 (Qualification) and 3.33 (Comparisons with identifiable competitors).
Ad (e) and (f) breached BCAP Code rules 3.1, 3.2 (Misleading advertising), 3.9 (Substantiation), 3.10 (Qualification) and 3.33 (Comparisons with identifiable competitors).
Action
The ads must not appear again in the form complained about. We told Vodafone Ltd to ensure that future advertising for the buy-back guarantee made sufficiently clear that it related to a trade-in price agreed at the point of sale on a particular Vodafone phone, offered in credit and did not suggest that Vodafone was the only UK provider to offer a general buy-back or trade-in scheme, unless they held objective comparative evidence in support of that claim.
BCAP Code
3.1 3.10 3.2 3.33 3.9 3.1 3.3 3.7 3.33 3.9
