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Why Dishonesty in Advertising Matters
I care about dishonest advertising.
On one level, there's the personal mugging aspect.
I don't like being mugged and in the same way I don't like being
lied to.
It's one thing being lied to by a relative, a teenager
or some street beggar, but it's quite another being lied to by big
corporations in a way which is condoned by society, and actually,
for me, this second issue is the bigger source of disappointment
for me.
The fact that we tolerate public lying-for-profit,
formally, as a society, is grim evidence for the notion that our
society is widely corrupt; dominated by powerful self-interested
people who defend the practice because it keeps them in power and
it keeps the masses under foot.
From Joe Blow's perspective, we become resigned
to our lot, recognising that it's bigger than we are and we are
powerless to fix it. We feel defeated and apathetic about any prospect
of change.
Daily, in our homes on the TV, we are shown that
success means dishonest manipulation. Our morals dissolve. Our society
gets poorer.
What About the Watchdogs?
Yes, we have watchdog organisations. They're publicly
financed, and in theory, put there to protect the interests of you
and me. But, in my experience (which you can read about in this
and other articles on this website), Watchdogs become institutions
for protecting the livelihoods of those who draw salaries from them.
And these employees move between these institutions, building careers
out of paying lip-service but carefully avoiding any serious rocking
of the rotten boat. Wouldn't want to get wet, after all.
So, they are slow to act, complacent, and inefficient.
And in the case of dishonest advertising, they formally permit all
kinds of deceit through the mechanism of arse-covering get-outs.
In other words, they are expensive and useless, and out here in
the real world, we continue to be up to our ankles in stinking nonsense.
The Large Print Giveth...
One of the annoying and all-pervading principles
of advertising is that you can't actually LIE unless you take it
back in the same ad. BUT - you can lie in big brightly-coloured
moving images with emotive sound and dialogue - and you can take
it back in tiny fleeting low-contrast text.
Our Advertising
Standards Authority (ASA) doesn't see a problem with
that, and really - that's all I need to know about our Advertising
Standards Authority - right there. Knowing that they think
that's just hunky dory, means I also know they are either astonishingly
stupid (which is unlikely) or they are not really interested in
upholding high ethical standards in advertising. Which makes you
kind of wonder why they exist.
I try to fight dishonest advertising but it's ubiquitous,
and since the ad people know that the ASA are not interested in
real justice in advertising, they know how to play the game and
manipulate us within the ASA guidelines.
We're making money hand over fist,
the ASA don't care,
and all's right with the world.
Comforting.
OK - off the soap box then, and on with the show.
Cahoot Online Bank
I have been a customer of Cahoot for a long time.
I don't recommend them, but I'm not here to talk about their general
incompetence. Specifically, I'm here to talk about one aspect of
their advertising, and their dialogue with me about it.
Here's a snapshot from their website as it appeared
at the time I was looking into this:
See the "headline rates?" 6.05%! Wow. Apply
Now! Well, no - because you won't get that rate unless you have
more than a million pounds to deposit. For the vast majority of
us with less than £50K, we'll get 4.5%.
My guess is they'll claim (a) it says "up
to" and (b) the full rates are all included on the same page.
Sure. And in my world, (a) the phrase "up to" should be
forbidden since it's only logical use is to mislead, and
(b) yes, they are, and they're tiny and they're in low-contrast
gray-on-white text.
Most people don't read web pages from top to bottom
- they scan-and-click - and most will click APPLY NOW and see this
next screen:
See how reassuring it is. See that the ugly real-world
truth has gone now. They met the terms of the guidelines already,
but hey - they don't want to rub it in, right?
That gray-on-white tiny text annoyed me more than
usual. I thought it would be amusing to ask this fine upstanding
bank - yes BANK - to explain this fine upstanding advertising
conduct. So I did.
The whole sorry dialogue is below which my comments
(which are simply my personal viewpoint) inline, for completeness,
but the fast digest is below, and the conclusions is here.
- Why did you choose gray-on-white in small
text to show your interest rates?
- We tried to call you - please call us
- I prefer writing - please write
- We feel the ads and the rates are clearly
marked
- You didn't answer my question - please do
so now
- Our legal team also agree our rates are clearly
marked
- Please answer the questions I have asked
you
- The ad says "up to" and the rates
are clearly visible - there is no deceit
- You have not answered my question - please
do so now
- We chose the colour-scheme with the visually
impaired in mind
- Are you serious? Please confirm you are
speaking for Cahoot
- Our ad has white-on-burgundy and black-on-beige
- No they're not - in two browsers, and here
are screen-shots to prove it
- Our website has no visible issues as per
your complaint & no-one else complained
- I'm very fed up with you people - please
escalate this
[they never did & ignored me from then on]
For my concussion, please go here.
On the Cahoot home page there is an ad
for a savings account offering 6.05%.
When I click the MORE INFO link, I can see a bunch of other
features, but I don't see mention of needing more than a million
pounds to get that rate.
I see APPLY NOW.
However, way below that beige ad, in another panel, in small
low-contrast grey in grey text, I see the rates you have sent
me.
It seems clear to me, Melissa, that Cahoot's intention is
to mislead potential savers.
The large print giveth, and the small print taketh away.
The headline rate will be available to almost no-one.
How does it look to you?
Specifically, why are your actual rates hidden in this devious
way?
I'm sure Cahoot will come up with some creative corporate
claptrap to explain this away,
but it will be interesting (in a REALLY annoying kind of way)
to watch you do it.
Frankly - in my view, you're crooks. Crooks who own a bank.
And if I ruled the world, the architects of this particular
piece of corporate deception would be serving time in prison.
OK, over to you and yours, Melissa.
Thanks,
Chris
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| Dear Mr Wesley
Thank you for contacting cahoot in Coventry.
I tried calling you today in regards to the email which you
have sent, but unfortunately there was no answer.
If you wish to discuss this matter further, please feel free
to call me on 0844 9000 900.
if you require further assistance please do not hesitate
to contact us again.
Kind regards
Moomie Choudhury
Emails aren't always secure, and they may
be intercepted or changed after they've been sent. cahoot
doesn't accept liability if this happens. If you think someone
may have interfered with this email, please get in touch with
the sender another way. This message doesn't create or change
any contract. cahoot doesn't accept responsibility for damage
caused by any viruses contained in this email or its attachments.
Emails may be monitored. If you've received this email by
mistake, please let the sender know at once that it's gone
to the wrong person and then destroy it without copying, using,
or telling anyone about its contents.
cahoot is a division of Abbey National plc.
Abbey National plc. Registered Office: Abbey
National House, 2 Triton Square, Regent's Place, London, NW1
3AN, United Kingdom. Registered Number 2294747. Registered
in England. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Services
Authority. FSA registration number 106054. |
| I have removed Cahoot's disclaimer from
all subsequent emails to save space. |
| Hello Moomie, I would prefer a written
response in email, please.
Regards,
Chris |
| Dear Mr Sweeney,
Thank you for contacting
cahoot in Coventry.
With reference to your email, my colleague has reviewed your
complaint, we do feel we have marketed our product fairly
and have advertised our rates clearly.
Please find enclosed the next stage you need to go through.
Please be assured we have carried out a full investigation
for you. I hope
you feel we have offered a fair response to all of the issues
you raised. If
you remain unhappy, you may refer your concerns to the Abbey
Central
Complaints Team within 8 weeks, the address to contact is:
Complaints
Abbey
PO Box 5129
Milton Keynes
MK9 2YN
You can find details of how to take your complaint further
with Abbey at
http://www.cahoot.com/legal/legal.html#importantInfo under
the heading
'Complaints policy' which explains how we deal with complaints
and the role
of the Financial Ombudsman Service.
I hope that I have fully answered your query and you are
satisfied with my response.
If you require any further assistance please do not hesitate
to contact us again.
Kind Regards,
Claire
cahoot |
I have no idea why Claire thinks I'm
Mr Sweeney. Perhaps sheis imagining the monster she must be
dealing with.
Note also that each time we go round the "customer service"
loop, I get a new person. I'm sure they keep a log but when
customer services is set up this way, it's a recipe for having
your customer kicked from pillar to post. Each operative
may feel the urge to kick the customer over the fence with
any old guff, knowing that next time they come back (if they
can be bothered - and they know that most won't) - some other
poor operative will get to deal with it.
Imagine how different it would be if Clire knew that she
was stuck with me until I decided to go away. An entirely
different set of motivations come into play.
However, no-one does that. It seems to me that customer service
operations these days are set up to make customers so tired
and frustrated that the pain of using it outweighs the pain
of putting up with whatever it was you were moaning about
in the first place. The call centre staff are just canon fodder;
under-paid and under-trained - there to soak up abuse and
stodge up the customer's urge for a sensible resolution to
their complaint. |
Yes, I understood that the first time you
said it.
You say that you hope you have fully answered my query, but
really - that's just standard guff, isn't it?
Because you know full well that you have not answered any
part of my query.
Could you answer the questions I asked you in my last email,
please?
Thanks,
Chris |
| Dear Mr. Wesley
Thank you for contacting cahoot in Coventry.
I am very sorry that you are not happy with the responses
that we are sending to you however we have referred your query
to our legal team and the response we have received is that
the way in which our rates are marketed are not misleading
to our customers.
If you remain unhappy with the way in which our products
are marketed or even with our responses to your queries, you
may refer your concerns to the Abbey Central Complaints Team
within 8 weeks, the address to contact is:
Complaints
Abbey
PO Box 5129
Milton Keynes
MK9 2YN
You can find details of how to take your complaint further
with Abbey at http://www.cahoot.com/legal/legal.html#importantInfo
under the heading 'Complaints policy which explains how we
deal with complaints and, the role of the Financial Ombudsman
Service.
Kind Regards,
Clare Martin
|
I resisted all of their attempts to push
me down their complaints process. It is paper-based (i.e.
slow and costly), and I was concerned that it might be a second-level
motivation sink.
Anyway - I was there, now - speaking with things called "Customer
service representatives". Why can't they deal with my
issue - or find someone who can, and route them to me via
email? |
We are going around in circles, and it reflects
very badly on your service quality.
Review the case history, and stop providing knee-jerk formulaic
responses.
Please read my questions and then answer them.
Thank you Claire,
Chris |
Almost no-one is bloody-minded enough
to get this far, and I think that is what they rely on. Most
of us roll over and take it where the sun don't shine and
try to feel good about it.
As far as I can see - either each and every person I have
dealt with thus far is an idiot, or else - they're not idiots,
but they're trying to make me go away through stonewall-induced
frustration and fatigue. |
| Dear Mr Wesley,
Thank you for contacting cahoot in Coventry.
We have explained that on the homepage, it states 'up to
6.05% gross p.a .'.
However when you click on 'more info', the bottom of the
page then states:
*The cahoot savings account rates apply as follows:
4.50% gross p.a./AER for credit balances under £50,000;
and,
4.75% gross p.a./4.63% AER for credit balances of £50,000+
***
5.00% gross p.a./4.75% AER for credit balances of £100,000+
***
5.25% gross p.a./4.88% AER for credit balances of £250,000+
***
5.50% gross p.a./5.00% AER for credit balances of £500,000+
***
5.75% gross p.a./5.13% AER for credit balances of £750,000+
***
6.05% gross p.a./5.28% AER for credit balances of £1,000,000+
***
It also states when you click on rates and fees at the bottom
of the page and click on savings account, in detail, the rates
on the cahoot savings account.
It is not 'deceptive' or 'hidden' from the potential customer
and is advertised correctly.
Please be assured I have carried out a full investigation
for you. I hope you feel I have offered a fair response to
all of the issues you raised. If you remain unhappy, you may
refer your concerns to the Abbey Central Complaints Team within
8 weeks, the address to contact is:
Complaints
Abbey
PO Box 5129
Milton Keynes
MK9 2YN
You can find details of how to take your complaint further
with Abbey at http://www.cahoot.com/legal/legal.html#importantInfo
under the heading 'Complaints policy which explains how we
deal with complaints and, the role of the Financial Ombudsman
Service.
This is the next step if you wish to take this matter further
as there is not anything we can advise you of further in regards
to the advertisement of the rates of the cahoot savings account.
It is clear and explanatory on the cahoot homepage of what
we can offer you if you wish to apply for a cahoot savings
account.
If you require any further information please do not hesitate
to contact me.
Kind regards
If you require any further assistance please do not hesitate
to contact us again.
Kind Regards,
Donna Egan |
You have not answered my questions.
You placed the the interest rates outside the main area of focus.
You placed them in small text, in a low-contrast grey-on-grey
colour scheme.
I have repeatedly asked you why you did that.
You have repeatedly avoided answering that question.
Now. I will keep asking until you either answer me or you refuse
to continue this dialogue.
Whichever it is, at that point, I will publish the entire sorry
mess on the web for the world to see how well you deal with
enquiries like mine.
Over to you. |
| Dear Mr Wesley,
Thank you for contacting cahoot in Coventry.
Any rate changes on your account are sent out also via email
giving you 30 days notice of any charges applied to your account.
In regard to the colouring of our web site we consulted a
number of organisations to bring the web site in line for
the visually impaired.
Kind Regards,
Wendy Brookes
Important - FRAUDULENT EMAILS
We would like to confirm that cahoot does not send any emails
to customers requesting their security details or any other
confidential information.
If you are concerned that you may have disclosed any confidential
information, or have any queries about security, please click
on 'contact us' once you have logged in. |
Now, I give Wendy some credit here, because
she is the first person in 9 interactions who actually tried
to answer the simple question I asked.
Unfortunately, the answer she presents is preposterous, if
delightfully so. |
Wendy,
Thank you so much for brightening up my morning.
Are you SERIOUSLY saying that you chose small grey text, on
a grey background - not to hide your actual interest rates -
but to assist with the visually impaired? Please answer that,
officially, YES or NO on behalf of Cahoot and Abbey National
Plc.
Feel free to escalate if you don't have the authority to
make such a statement.
And then - What kind of visual impairment is that strategy
designed to help with?
Regards,
Chris |
| Dear Mr Wesley,
Thank you for contacting cahoot in Coventry.
We have checked the web site it shows that our rates and
fees are white wrighting on a burgundy back ground and black
wrighting on a pale pink back ground.
As advised by my college if you have any further complaints
you will have to address these to our stage two complaints
address:
By post:
Complaints
Stage Two
PO Box 5129
Milton Keynes
MK9 2YN
By phone: 0845 600 6014*
By fax: 0845 600 1378
By e-mail: customerservices@abbey.com
Kind Regards,
Wendy Brookes |
Wendy,
I have included a screenshot of what I see when I view the page
- it makes no visible difference if I look at the page in Internet
Explorer or Firefox.
The full list of rates is at the bottom of the screenshot below.
They look like grey on grey to me.
Perhaps you could make a case for saying it's slightly purple,
but that does not materially affect the fact that the rates
are very inconspicuously displayed,and that this looks like
a conspicuous decision on Cahoot's part.
No-one has answered my question - so it remains to be answered
by you - or perhaps - yet another of your colleagues.
Regards,
Chris |
| Dear Mr Wesley,
Thank you for contacting cahoot in Coventry.
We have checked our website and it shows no visible problem
as per your issue. If you wish to proceed please call the
centre on 0844 9000 900 so that we can complete a technical
investigation.
Please note there have been no reported problems from any
other customers and we have checked our website ourselves.
Kind Regards
Harjit Dhesi |
It just goes on and on and on and on and
on and on and on, doesn't it?
I will not phone you.
I will not initiate a "formal complaint" to your postal
address.
I will not give up nor go away.
I will keep going until you either answer satisfactorily or
discontinue this dialogue, at which point I will publish all
of this online.
In the meantime, you just keep growing a longer and longer record
for being at best incompetent and at worse, devious and manipulative.
Please escalate this to your customer services manager and have
them respond to me in email please.
Thank you.
Chris Wesley |
Conclusion
Well, yes, I gave up despite what I said. They
ignored me.
Today, months later, I have no credible explanation
from Cahoot about why they chose gray-on-white text, outside the
main ad in small text, to display their full rates, whilst they
chose large, brightly coloured high-contrast text inside the main
ad to highlight a rate which almost no-one will get.
Well, I didn't completely give up, because I've
spent this Sunday morning writing up the whole pathetic episode
in the hope that it might make some difference. And there is some
evidence to suggest that it will. Ocean Finance no longer say their
"rates are competitive", and Duracell specify which kind
of battery theirs lasts much longer than.
And there's one more lever on decency I am going
to try.
Please use the form below to express your views
on this article and on Cahoot's conduct in dealing with my enquiry
and in designing their ad in the first place. Perhaps if Cahoot
get thousands of emails form people who think they stink they'll
think again, and if I get thousands of emails telling me I'm a tiny-minded
moron, then maybe I'll jump out the window and save everyone a lot
of bother.
Cahoot have been notified of this article. If they
would like to provide a response, I will include it here verbatim.
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