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An advert for CrossCountry Trains has been banned for over-promising on the provision of complimentary foods and drinks for passengers.
Regardless of the agency’s web site claiming passengers would obtain free foods and drinks “on most of our first-class providers”, catering was out there on lower than 80 per cent of journeys, the Promoting Requirements Authority (ASA) discovered.
The web site stated: “An at-seat service of complimentary non-alcoholic drinks and snacks is obtainable all through the day for all first-class clients… Along with drinks and snacks, clients on longer journeys can select from a spread of complimentary sandwiches.”
Two passengers who stated they ceaselessly travelled on the first-class service however didn’t obtain complimentary foods and drinks complained that the advert was deceptive.
CrossCountry Trains advised the ASA the interval main as much as the complainants seeing the advert – September to November 2023 – was marked by “distinctive disruption” resulting from industrial motion and 4 storms.
It had deliberate to supply catering, together with first-class foods and drinks, on between 70 per cent and 78 per cent of its Voyager routes, which operated on most of its long-distance providers from September to November 2023, with slight variations relying on the day of the week.
The ASA stated the advert “positioned complimentary foods and drinks as a key a part of CrossCountry Trains’ first-class providing”.
It stated the scheduled price of between70 per cent and 78 per cent of providers providing catering was inadequate to substantiate the general impression of the advert that complimentary foods and drinks can be out there on all however a number of first-class providers.
The ASA stated: “We acknowledged that CrossCountry Trains had made amendments to their web site, however for the explanations acknowledged above, we concluded that the declare ‘complimentary foods and drinks’ was deceptive, and subsequently breached the Code.”
It dominated that the advert should not seem once more, including: “We advised CrossCountry Trains to not use the declare ‘complimentary foods and drinks’ until they held sufficient proof to substantiate the declare.”
