3:01 pm, December 18, 2013
The Mini advert on the A532
The advert was displayed on a 96-sheet billboard on the A532 and featured blurred red and white lines trailing behind the Mini along with text reading: ‘The A532. It’s miles more fun in a Mini’.
A complaint to The Advertising Standards Authority questioned whether or not the advert, created by Iris Worldwide, could be harmful because it could be seen to encourage dangerous driving.
The ASA found that the large number of lines in different colours would give the impression of a fast moving vehicle and excessive speed.
In response, BMW Mini said the poster’s wide format and coloured lines referred to the long distances people could travel in the car and not to speedy or unsafe driving. BMW also said the word ‘fun’ refers to Mini’s brand values and how it felt to drive a Mini.
The ruling from the ASA reads: ‘We considered that the text in conjunction with the impression of a fast-moving vehicle was likely to convey the impression of excessive speed, and that that was the main message of the ad.
‘Because the poster gave the impression that the car was being driven at excessive speed, in a built-up environment, along with the text ‘It’s miles more fun in a Mini’, we concluded it was irresponsible and was likely to encourage dangerous driving.’
The ASA said the advert must not appear again in its current form and warned BMW not to focus on speed in any future campaigns.
