Watchdog bans Currys' price-beater slogan

Electrical goods retailer Currys has been banned from using its "unbeatable low prices" slogan after rival store Comet complained to advertising watchdogs.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ordered Currys to remove the slogan from all newspaper and print advertising, after an investigation found the claims to be misleading.

According to the ASA, Comet objected to Currys' claims that its prices were unbeatable. Comet said the slogan was misleading as Currys did not always offer the lowest prices.

But Currys, which is owned by the Dixons group, dismissed the complaint, arguing that the "unbeatable" slogan was "common advertising hyperbole and would not be interpreted literally".

It said it promises customers that if they find a lower cost product elsewhere, it will beat the price by 10 per cent, thereby ensuring that its prices are 'unbeatable'.

The ASA upheld the complaint, however, after price comparisons showed that Currys was often more expensive than Comet. It also found that, even when Currys knew its rival was charging a lower price, it still maintained a higher one.

The watchdog decided that the prominence which Currys gave to such claims in its advertising meant that consumers would not expect the retailer's prices to be beatable.