Fairness Commission: annoyance with competitions
Time and again, companies take advantage of people’s love of winning by promising prizes in their advertisements. Some of them, such as Möven-Touristik, however, use this only to lure recipients to a promotional event.
The statements on the flyer were unambiguous: "Last date to collect your prize", it says on the leaflet, which is headed "Prize draw 2007/2008". A consumer from Ebertswil in the canton of Zurich was surprised to receive the mailing, as he had just moved here and had never taken part in a competition. How could he be promised a prize? And the prizes to be won, which were undefined, were certainly tempting: up to 10,000 francs were promised. The person contacted was suspicious, as he could not find any of the "lucky winners" mentioned on the Internet and the company is not registered in the commercial register. He decided to lodge a complaint with the Swiss Commission for Fair Trading (SLK).
The Third Chamber examined the advertising statements and concluded on the basis of principle no. 3.9 no. 2 that "promises of winnings that are advertised as slogans and are only qualified at a subordinate point are unfair". The Commission also states: "The text promises a payout. Whether and what exactly the addressee has won remains unclear. This competition is therefore unfair."
Although this decision was communicated to Möven-Touristik in Baar, the company did not react. On the contrary, despite the condemnation, it continued to send out its unfair advertising. With practically the same text and even the same printing errors.
The Third Chamber examined the advertising statements and concluded on the basis of principle no. 3.9 no. 2 that "promises of winnings that are advertised as slogans and are only qualified at a subordinate point are unfair". The Commission also states: "The text promises a payout. Whether and what exactly the addressee has won remains unclear. This competition is therefore unfair."
Although this decision was communicated to Möven-Touristik in Baar, the company did not react. On the contrary, despite the condemnation, it continued to send out its unfair advertising. With practically the same text and even the same printing errors.
