‘Chiller’ Eurocamp TV ad cleared by watchdogs
Eurocamp’s TV ad, which showed a toddler lying in bright sunlight, did not breach advertising rules, according to watchdogs.
One viewer had complained to the Advertising Standards Authority that the advert, screened in January, featured behaviour that could be dangerous for children to emulate and was detrimental to children’s health.
The advert included several scenes of people on holiday, including a toddler in sunglasses lying on their back with their arms behind their head, in bright sunlight on a rubber ring in a swimming pool.
The scene was accompanied by a voice-over that stated, "Perhaps you’re a chiller."
Eurocamp said the ad was ‘not intended to reflect or promote sunbathing, but the idea of relaxation on a Eurocamp holiday’.
It was part of a series and each included the voice-over line: "Perhaps you’re a chiller".
They said that the child was in a relaxed pose which matched with the voice-over line and would not be interpreted as a child actively sunbathing.
They believed that parents would not consider that the child was sunbathing because, as the child was two years old, it was not a realistic action for them to be carrying out. They considered that viewers would interpret the ad as simply showing a child relaxing on a rubber ring, and that this was made clear by the line "Perhaps you’re a chiller".
Eurocamp said that they took child safety seriously and considered that the scene complied with NHS guidance on sun safety. They said the scene was very short and it would not be possible to show the measures taken to appropriately protect the child from too much sun exposure, including the amount of time spent in direct sunlight, the use of sunscreen and that the child was outside in an appropriate time of day and time of year. However, consumers would be able to see that the child was wearing sunglasses and clothing.
The ASA said it did not consider that viewers would think the child was sunbathing as ‘such a very young child would not normally engage in that activity’.
It added: "We therefore concluded that the ad did not condone a behaviour that was detrimental to children’s health and that it did not breach the Code."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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