The UK Advertising Standards Agency has rapped Air Malta for carrying a misleading advert in the UK press at the end of last summer.
The advert, which has since been amended by the airline, portrayed a young laughing couple against the backdrop of the Grand Harbour and offered the prospect of an idyllic weekend in Malta for £99. It read: “Friday. Saturday. Sunday. Next weekend in Malta...The forecast is fun! Flights from Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Birmingham”.
However, a potential tourist contacted the ASA and challenged the availability of the £99 fares from Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester and Birmingham airport on Fridays and Mondays.
When the ASA took the matter to the airline, Air Malta defended the advert, saying the £99 fee was subject to availability and the terms and conditions which customers were bound to read and agree to before making a booking online. Air Malta also defended the advertised price, saying it had sold 29 per cent of its October flights and 26 per cent of its September flights for £99, insisting it did not find the advert misleading.
The ASA however said “consumers would expect the £99 fare to be available in sufficient quantities to ensure a reasonable chance of taking up the offer”, and ruled that even though the advert said the flights were subject to availability, this did not absolve the airline from ensuring customers had a “reasonable chance of taking up the offer”.
The airline admitted that the claim “next weekend in Malta” should not have appeared in the advert since the offer was ongoing and not restricted.
The ASA considered that customers would understand the claims “Next weekend in Malta... The forecast is fun”, alongside weather forecast pictures for Friday, Saturday and Sunday to mean that there were flights available from the listed airports for weekend breaks to Malta.
Flight timetables, in fact, revealed there were no flights between Malta and Birmingham on either Fridays or Mondays between August and October, leading the ASA to conclude the advert was misleading.
The ASA also considered that the advertisement led punters to think the offer was available for the following or forthcoming weekends only, and that the timing of a holiday was a “significant factor likely to influence a consumer’s understanding of the offer”.
It ruled that the ad should not appear again that form.
Air Malta said it “supports responsible advertising and the Advertising Codes outlined by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
“Following a single complaint received in response to an advertisement promoting return fares from £99, Air Malta investigated the compliant and provided the ASA with significant data confirming the number of fares made available and sold at the advertised fare.
“Air Malta fully accepts the ASA ruling regarding the choice of wording used in the advertisement, and has since then reworded all advertisements accordingly.”