A Black Friday ad for a shared ownership offer was misleading and breached advertising rules, a housing developer has been told.

The advert marketed by London & Quadrant Housing Trust (L&Q) featured in large posters on the London Underground last year (see main picture).

‘Black Friday, The Shared Ownership Way’, the ad stated. ‘Brand new and ready-to-move-into homes available from £57,500 for a 25% share.

‘Reserve between 16-30 November for only £99 and receive a £500 John Lewis voucher’, it said.

Tight timescale

But the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled the advert did not comply with the ‘CAP code’, and must not be used again. The original complaint was made by campaign group Shared Ownership Resources.

The ASA says the offer did not make clear the tight timescales involved in meeting the terms.

“Because of the short timeframe in which consumers had to choose a shared ownership home and commit to purchasing it, we considered that the two-week promotion window meant that consumers could be rushed to make a quick decision on a considered purchase for fear of losing out on the offer,” the ASA says.

“We considered that the speed at which it was necessary to exchange contracts and complete the sale in order to remain eligible for the voucher had not been made sufficiently clear to consumers.”

Not pressured

L&Q says the promotional deadline was extended for 18 individuals, and that it demonstrated customers were not pressured to take part.

It was only after 22 days or more that the full £99 reservation fee was retained by L&Q.

The ASA dismissed this defence though and added: “We also considered that the ad did not make clear the promotional offer only carried a two-day cooling-off period.”

The ASA also ruled that the ad did not specify that participants would have to select a solicitor or mortgage broker from the L&Q approved panel.

Read the full ruling here

Main picture: Shared Ownership Resources