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New Decisions: Window Insulation Lingo, Car Singalongs and More

Retrofit Window Insulation Lingo Clarified

A television advertisement by HRV shows toys in a child’s room talking about the temperature in the home before and after HRV Retro Fit double glazing was installed. The wording “HRV Affordable Window Solutions” and “HRV Retro Fit double glazing” appear on screen.

A complaint was made about the use of the term “double glazing”. The complainant stated that:

“True retro fit double glazing involves removing the existing sash windows and either replacing them with a new double glazed unit or rebating the old windows… What HRV are doing is NOT DOUBLE GLAZING, but SECONDARY GLAZING, a small point in wording but is misleading and inaccurate as to what you are purchasing compared to the ‘ real thing ‘”.

The Advertiser responded:

“We believe this is a fair and true representation of the product and reflects general consumer understanding that double glazing provides insulation for windows… There is no clear standard for the use of the terms secondary glazing and double glazing. They are interchangeable terms which have been in use since prior to the acquisition of the Energy Saving Centre assets by HRV.”

The Commercial Approvals Bureau approved the advertisement earlier in the year and stated “the average viewer is unlikely to be misled by small criteria and jargon that really only bears relevance to professional tradespeople.”

The Complaints Board considered that the advertisement was unlikely to mislead consumers because the visual shows an acrylic sheet being applied to an existing window to create an air cavity which insulates the window, rather than the window being removed and replaced with a window containing double glazed glass. The Board thought the advertisement was clear and more of a starting point for consumers to investigate which kind of window insulation product would work best for them.

Accordingly, the Complaints Board ruled to Not Uphold the complaint.  More details…

Car Singalong Deemed Safe

A television advertisement for Spark New Zealand showed a man driving a car with a child beside him. They are singing and occasionally look briefly at each other. A complaint was made that the man driving and singing was not watching the road as he turned to face the child a number of times.

The Advertiser said that during production and filming of the advertisement particular attention was paid to safe driving practices. They noted that the New Zealand Transport Agency’s guidelines on driving safely state anything that diverts a driver’s attention for more than two seconds can significantly increase the likelihood of a crash or near crash. The Advertisement does not show the driver diverting attention to his daughter for more than one second at a time.

The Complaints Board noted that the advertisement had been approved by the Commercial Approvals Bureau (CAB). The CAB’s opinion was that the driving behaviour shown was reasonable and typical and could not be found to be in breach of New Zealand laws.  The Complaints Board also noted the Advertiser’s comprehensive enumeration of methods used to ensure safety was considered during production and filming of the advertisement.

The Complaints Board decided the advertisement did not breach Basic Principle 4 of the Code of Ethics and did not encourage a disregard for safety and cross a line that put it in breach of Rule 12: Safety.

Accordingly, the Complaints Board ruled to Not Uphold the complaint.  More details…

The following decisions were published on the ASA website on 21 October 2016: