ASA dismisses complaints against Health Lottery adverts

Fundraising | Celina Ribeiro | 18 Apr 2012

The Advertising Standards Authority has dismissed complaints about the prize figures quoted in Health Lottery advertising.

The ASA received six complaints about a television advertisement for the new lottery which told viewers that they’d win £50 if they matched three balls, £500 if four matched and £100,000 if all five matched. A few complaints were also made about a Health Lottery press advert which made the same £100,000 claim and said that players are seven-times more likely to win £100,000 playing the Health Lottery than they are by playing Lotto.

Most complaints, however, questioned whether the Health Lottery was misleading in stating that the top prize was £100,000, and not “up to £100,000”.

All complaints were dismissed by the advertising regulator, which was satisfied with evidence from the Health Lottery and Clearcast that the lottery is run as a fixed-prize game, and that pay-out amounts did not vary.

Clearcast said that the insurance it has against large numbers of winners getting the top £100,000 prize meant that statistically the Health Lottery would not be able to pay out to all winners just once in every 200 years. Clearcast and the ASA have judged, therefore, that the Health Lottery does not need to publish any small print caveats to cover the 0.0096 per cent chance that the Lottery will not be able to make good on its prize claims.

The 'seven times more likely to win' claim was also found to be robust.

Martin Hall, chief executive of the Health Lottery welcomed the ASA ruling. “It is great to receive confirmation from the ASA that our marketing and communications have been delivered to the highest standards,” he said.

Directory: Health Lottery

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