PayPal 'reward' email slammed for misleading

PayPal 'reward' email slammed for misleading
Image captionPayPal was told not to send offers without clarifying that not everyone would receive them
The email sent by payment giant PayPal which promised customers a £ 10 reward for using their accounts did not make it clear enough that not everyone would get it, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled.

It upheld a complaint from the email recipient, an offer limited to the first 28,527 people to respond.

PayPal said it explained this in the terms and conditions.

But ASA said the ad should not appear in its current form again.

"We considered that consumers were likely to understand from the subject line and the main claim that they would receive a £10 credit from PayPal, and subsequent qualifications were insufficient to counter this impression, so we concluded that the ad was misleading and code-breaking," ASA wrote in its ruling.

In its defense, PayPal said the marketing email was " designed to inform customers of the availability of the offer and included all important qualifications and conditions."

The email from PayPal, received on September 29, 2020, included the greeting: "a long time ago I do not see. Here's a £10 bonus for you!"

Reported the main claim in the text of the email: "We offer you £10 to use online with PayPal ", followed by a right-click" Save offer " clickable.

Has been mentioned the fact that the offer was limited to the first 28,527 people apply only in the small print below.

In recent months, ASA has banned a series of online ads. In October, it ruled that the use of fluffy animals in an advertisement for the gambling site Gala Spins was irresponsible because it was likely to attract Under 18s. Mobile game ads that showed completely different content from the actual product were also blocked.

She has repeatedly warned social media influencers that their posts should clarify whether they are ads.