Advertisment
The advertisement that appeared on a radio listening app stated the following:
“The value continues for the jump season at the Ladbrokes as the race that stops the nation approaches at the form of the Aintree Grand National.
And, in all of Ladbrokes Republic of Ireland retail shops we are paying out on the first six home. That’s six places at the 5th of the odds on the Aintree Grand National at Ladbrokes.
Over 18s. Ts and Cs apply.”
Complaint
The complainant said that the advertisement contained no responsible gaming message or direction to any information about gambling responsibly.
Response
The advertisers said that the advertisement was designed and run as a trial to promote the Grand National and was targeted specifically to retail customers.
They said that, unfortunately, whereas the advertisement did include an over 18 message and stated that terms and conditions applied to the offer, it did not include information or a signpost to responsible gambling information. They said they recognised the error as noted by the complainant and set out the actions they had taken to address the complaint.
They said their marketing team for Ladbroke Ireland had been made aware of the issue and, moving forward, any advertisements published or aired must have a compliance review and approval before publishing. They said that in addition to this, all marketing staff would undergo additional training via an online learning portal plus face to face workshops to specifically review the Code. They also confirmed that the advertisement in question would not be aired again.
The advertisers said that the advertisement did mention that it was a retail customer offer and was not designed for widespread internet users or to promote internet gambling, as noted in the complaint. They said that, however, given the listenership of the radio app stream, they would consider the medium by which advertisements were published as part of the review process moving forward.
They said they appreciated the complaint raised and had taken steps to address the issues to ensure full compliance with the Code and that appropriate staff training was delivered.
Conclusion
Complaint Upheld.
The Complaints Committee considered the detail of the complaint and the advertisers’ response. They noted the advertisers’ comments in relation to the error that occurred and their procedures following the error to ensure compliance.
The Committee concluded that in the absence of responsible gaming message or direction to any information about gambling responsibly the advertisement was in breach of sections 3.3 and 10.10 of the Code.
ACTION REQUIRED:
As the advertisement in question would not be aired again, there is no further action to be made. The Committee told the advertisers that any future advertising must contain a message to encourage responsible gambling and direct people to a source of information about gambling and gambling responsibly.
