ASA bans estate agency ad

12 January 2011 | By Natalie Thomas

Clarets Estate Agents challenged whether a number of claims made in an ad by Imagine Estate Agents were misleading and could be substantiated.

The ad was headlined Advertising Standards and text in the body copy claimed: “We have had the delight of dealing with the fallout after one of our less amiable competitors complained we had created a leaflet that contravened ASA regulations and reported us accordingly.

“In fact let’s not pull any punches, this wasn’t one of our less amiable competitors, this was by some distance the most unpleasant little reptile I have ever had the misfortune to cross swords with since plying this trade. 

Actually for all the reputation of estate agents and my own competitive nature, in coming up 20 years I have only had a couple of spats with rivals worthy of the name.”

It goes on to say: “Most of the business owners I have known, I have found to be pretty decent, hard working people in general and though I may look for a competitive edge over them and highlight that edge, I wouldn’t ever look to make it personal. 

However, for this horrible weasel I am prepared to make an exception!!! 

The problem arose out of frustration that the guy was claiming service standards that we knew he simply didn’t deliver in reality.

“Following yet another discovery of dubious business practice by this business one of my staff took it upon themselves to design a leaflet highlighting the service failings we knew of. Unfortunately this was pretty much lowering our standards to his level. Plus we hadn’t taken the time to collate the evidence of all the wrong doing. 

As a result, when the guy had the audacity to take the leaflet to the higher authorities (I say audacity because he knows damn well they were all true!!) I didn’t have a leg to stand on and had to concede we shouldn’t have sent it.

“However galling the experience to back track was, as ever it has provided some useful lessons. 

Firstly, my staff now know they can’t produce a leaflet with my company name on it without having had it authorised. This is a pretty worthwhile safety net to have in place going forward. 



“Secondly, the public would rather see us highlight our qualities than undermine another’s failings. 



’Finally, my staff are also now aware that as the saying says ’revenge is a dish best served cold’! Letting your emotions get the better of you in the heat of the moment rarely results in an educated, intelligent or constructive response. 

This is a dilemma for both us the competitor and you the client. How do you know if one person is giving you a genuine commitment to what service you receive and another is spouting sweet nothings purely to win your business??? Do not sign tie n [sic] agreements!! That way, if you do make a wrong judgement you can pull out immediately.”

Imagine Estate Agents  disagreed with the complainant’s contention that the ad was misleading or denigratory.

But the ASA said it would not be difficult for interested readers to deduce the complainant’s identity, particularly in light of the reference to the ASA.

It also said Imagine did not have evidence in support of their beliefs about Clarets’ business practices. Because the ASA had seen no evidence of that, it concluded that the claims were misleading.

It also concluded that some of the claims were unfairly denigratory to the complainant’s business.

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