Advertisers found in breach of code

A Ryanair advertisement which stated "it's not just the Bank of Ireland which gets robbed at Dublin airport" was deemed to be in breach of the code of practice of the Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland (ASAI), the authority announced yesterday.

The Ryanair advertisement, which also made use of a quotation from Aer Lingus chief executive, Mr Gary Cullen, was the subject of complaints from Aer Lingus and a Co Meath branch of the Bank of Ireland.

At its December meeting, the ASAI found 15 out of 24 advertisements which were the subject of complaint were in breach of standards. These included a complaint of nudity in an advertisement for Pot Noodle, based on the painting The Temptation of Eve; a television advertisement for Imetec Electric Blanket because it showed a large woman striking her small male partner and so indulged scenes of domestic violence; a complaint against Colm McEvoy Auctioneers of Kildare because of a suggestion that Sallins was 25 minutes from Dublin by motorway, and a Ryan Hotel offer distributed by Eircom which was not available during certain periods.

Complaints upheld included an advertisement for a Contact IT recruitment fair, in which the £5 admission charge was not mentioned; a press advertisement for Hamilton Osborne King which suggested River Park, Islandbridge, Dublin, was "10 minutes walk from O'Connell Bridge"; a radio commercial for Head and Shoulders because it featured a man with a voice that was threatening and a complaint against Specsavers that it implied two pairs of varifocal spectacles were available for £69.

A complaint was upheld against Advance Pitstop for a commercial that featured a child explaining that her parents no longer spoke to each other, following their car's failure of the National Car Test.

However a complaint from Dublin Bus about a similar advertisement on behalf of Advance Pitstop was not upheld. The bus company had objected on the grounds that the girl refers to waiting hours for a bus and says her daddy would "like to show the bus company exactly what they can do with their buses".