Complaint against Ryanair lifeboat advert upheld

A COMPLAINT by the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) against Ryanair has been upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland (ASAI).

The complaint referred to a newspaper advertisement by the airline which featured a lifeboat at sea with the caption DOPES??? THEY SHOULD HAVE FLOWN RYANAIR!! (WE WON'T LOSE YOUR BAGGAGE).

The RNLI complained that Ryanair had used a photograph of an RNLI lifeboat and a volunteer lifeboat crew while they were involved in a search and rescue and felt that the headline "DOPES???" implied a description of the actions of the volunteer crews. As a charity dependent on public support, the RNLI was also "extremely concerned" that an image of one of their lifeboats and volunteer crew was used for a national advertising campaign without permission.

Another complainant to the ASAI found the same advertisement misleading and offensive and felt that Ryanair was encouraging drug smugglers to use its services, guaranteeing not to lose bags containing smuggled drugs.

Ryanair failed to respond to ASAI queries about the advertisement. The ASAI expressed its concern at this and its dissatisfaction with the type of copy used by Ryanair. It reminded the airline that in future campaigns, it must obtain written permission from people and organisations before depicting them or referring to them in marketing communications.

A complaint by the Captive Animals Protection Society against an advertisement for the Australian Super Circus Sydney was also upheld. It stated in brochure headlines that the circus was "direct from Down Under" and on a "first ever visit". The society said it believed the circus was permanently based in Ireland and that the owners were from Germany. It therefore found the claim "direct from Down Under" to be misleading. It also believed the circus had been travelling around Ireland since 2006 and so considered the claim "first ever visit" to be misleading.

In a separate complaint, the protection society said that while the circus was claiming to have three baby and two adult elephants, it only had two elephants. It also said the advertising did not provide the contact information required.

The circus said it was the first time it had visited Tallaght and that circus owner Alexander Scholl was the seventh generation of real circus people. His father was German, but on his mother's side he had relatives in Australia.

A complaint by the National Association of Deputy Principals against a radio advertisement for Ashfield College, which the association claimed "served to discredit and undermine the concept of the transition year", was also upheld.

Further details at www.asai.ie