The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) have revealed the most complained about adverts from 2014, with Paddy Power topping the list by a wide margin.
The bookmakers’s Oscar Pistorius ad received 5,525 complaints and the ASA said it brought advertising into disrepute and caused serious offence by trivialising the issues surrounding a murder trial, the death of a woman and disability.
While most complaints received by the ASA were on reasons of offence, 2014 saw a rise in so-called “copycat websites” that attempt to mislead the public into believing that they are official government websites. Two copycat websites made the top ten list.
2014’s ten most complained about ads
1. Paddy Power plc – 5,525 complaints – Upheld
2. Booking.com BV – 1,768 complaints – Not upheld
3. News UK & Ireland Ltd t/a The Sun – 1,711 complaints – Upheld
4. J Sainsbury plc in association with The Royal British Legion – 823 complaints – Not upheld
5. The Save the Children Fund – 614 complaints – Not upheld
6. Waitrose Ltd – 267 complaints – Resolved
7. Must Have Ltd t/a VIP Electronic Cigarettes -199 complaints – Upheld
8. TADServices Ltd t/a uk-passport.net – 188 complaints – Sector investigation
9. Unilever UK Ltd – 183 complaints – Not upheld
