ASA ruling on clothes retailer

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled that an advertisement for UNIQLO (UK) Ltd has breached the CAP code by not making clear environmental claims and suggesting that their products were made entirely from recycled materials.

The advertisement was a paid-for Google ad stated, “Fleece Coats & Jackets – UNIQLO Women’s Range […] Shop UNIQLO Fleece Coats & Jackets Now […] Recycled Materials”.

When ASA challenged whether the claim “recycled materials” could be substantiated, UNIQLO stated consumers were likely to understand “Recycled Materials” to mean that the fleece jackets or coats referred to in the ad were made, to a meaningful extent, from recycled materials. They also stated that the claim did not suggest that every component of the garments, such as the metal zipper or the labels, were recycled, and explained that their claims were supported by independent verification by a recognised international certification scheme.

The CAP Code required that the basis of environmental claims must be clear and stated that unqualified claims could mislead if they omitted material information. As the claim in the ad was absolute, and required a high level of substantiation, therefore ASA found that the claim was likely to mislead.