ASA forces Asda to drop low price claim
Asda is to stop referring to itself as “officially Britain’s lowest priced supermarket” after a complaint from rival Tesco
Tesco had complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) about the claim, made during number of Asda press adverts and a television commercial. After an investigation, the ASA upheld Tesco’s complaints and told Asda not to repeat its claims. Tesco also objected to Asda’s use of the word “official”, as it said this wrongly suggested that the survey was Government or industry body-based.
The supermarket industry magazine’s Grocer 33 Survey compared the price of 33 products across eight retailers on a weekly basis for a year. In June 2004 The Grocer named Asda winner of its annual “cheapest basket” award for the seventh year in succession, after which Asda began the advertisements. Tesco complained to the ASA because it said The Grocer survey was limited and unrepresentative, as it did not look at enough product lines.
Asda marketing director Chris Pilling added that Tesco’s complaint was a “complete waste of time”. “We promise we’ll never again claim to be the cheapest supermarket for seven years in a row, that’s because we’ve now won the Grocer title for eight years on the trot”
Julian Hunt, editor of The Grocer, said the magazine stood by its survey results.
“We believe our shopping survey is based on robust methodology, is independent and is well respected”
Tesco said “We are delighted that the ASA have confirmed what we have always said – no supermarket should be allowed to rely on a list of 33 products produced by a trade magazine to claim they are the cheapest.”
