The Advertising Standards Agency has today ruled that a delivery promise made by Argos in a recent TV advert was misleading.
The ad promised Argos shoppers a delivery slot that's "that's right for you". However, the ASA found that the ad implied customers could specify a delivery time, which isn't the case. It said: "The ASA noted that Argos provided a number of delivery options to customers, dependent on the items being delivered. We understood that Argos would tell customers whether the delivery would be in the morning or afternoon and in the case of larger items, Argos chose a specific two-hour time period within their three delivery slots.

"However, we considered the claim "we can deliver when you want at a time slot that's right for you" implied that customers could specify a delivery time of their choosing, which was at their convenience, and therefore that they had a wide degree of choice about when their goods would be delivered. Because we understood that was not the case, we concluded that the ad was misleading."

The retailer disagreed with the claims, saying they believed viewers would refer to the company website, catalogue or ask instore to check delivery information once they'd seen the TV ad.

The ASA said Argos "believed that the claim "a slot that's right for you" was not misleading because customers were allocated a time period in which they could expect a delivery. Argos believed offering a morning or an afternoon slot was in keeping with the claim "... at a time slot that's right for you". They did not consider the ad was misleading."