Description:
The ad, a video posted on Instagram, promoted a car detailing company. The video showed a group of women in bikinis washing a car and posing around it, while lathering themselves, each other and the car.
Complaint:
The complainant objected to the video as they considered that the focus of the ad was on the women’s bodies rather than the advertiser’s services. They also mentioned that the women were acting in a seductive and provocative way.
Response:
Although Ad Standards requested a response from the advertiser, there was no response sent to the Council.
Decision:
Council members considered the complaint together with the ad. Some members also expressed concern about the advertiser’s lack of response.
Council understood that the ad was intended to promote a car dealership’s services but noted that the focus of the video was instead on women washing a car in bikinis. They considered that the imagery used in the ad was a gratuitous and unnecessary way to promote a car dealership’s services.
A majority of members noted that showing the women in bikinis and portraying them in a seductive and sexualized manner was denigrating to women, contravening Clause 14(c) of the Code, which prohibits demeaning, denigrating or disparaging one or more identifiable group of persons.
Furthermore, Council considered that using imagery unrelated to the services provided by the dealership objectified women’s bodies for the purpose of attracting attention to the service. Council members unanimously determined that the video also contravened Clause 14(d) of the Code by displaying obvious indifference to conduct or attitudes that offend the standards of public decency prevailing among a significant segment of the population.
Infraction:
Clause 14(c) and 14(d)
