Appliance store DionWired has removed an advertisement for indoor air conditioning units after the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled it was misleading and must be removed.
DionWired commercial development director Jody Forrester said they were “aligned” with the ASA ruling.
“Our product description did not aptly inform the customer that an exterior unit is required in order for the indoor unit to be operational. As a result we have removed all individual air conditioner units from the website‚ and are in the process of reloading as bundled products.
“Should a customer wish to purchase a single unit‚ they can do so in store‚ or via online through contacting us at websupport@dionwired.co.za for a quote‚” Forrester said.
Willie Malherbe had complained about the store advertising the Samsung Maldive 12000BTU Inverter R410A indoor air conditioning unit. He said it was misleading‚ because the advertisement never said one needed the outdoor air conditioning for the indoor unit to work.
The ASA phoned Samsung technical support to check if consumers needed the outdoor unit to use the indoor unit. Samsung confirmed the indoor unit needed the matching outdoor unit‚ because they were installed back-to-back.
“The two should not be sold separately. It therefore seems that the complainant’s (Malherbe’s) version is correct.”
The ASA checked DionWired’s website “to see if this information was apparent from the surrounding material‚ and it was not”.
The ASA tried to get a response from DionWired‚ but to no avail. It assumed DionWired was not an ASA member over which it had no jurisdiction. The product was removed when the publication visited DionWired’s website on Friday afternoon.
DionWired removes misleading ad after Advertising Standards Authority ruling
Image: 123RF/Wisit Wangkanon
Appliance store DionWired has removed an advertisement for indoor air conditioning units after the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled it was misleading and must be removed.
DionWired commercial development director Jody Forrester said they were “aligned” with the ASA ruling.
“Our product description did not aptly inform the customer that an exterior unit is required in order for the indoor unit to be operational. As a result we have removed all individual air conditioner units from the website‚ and are in the process of reloading as bundled products.
“Should a customer wish to purchase a single unit‚ they can do so in store‚ or via online through contacting us at websupport@dionwired.co.za for a quote‚” Forrester said.
Willie Malherbe had complained about the store advertising the Samsung Maldive 12000BTU Inverter R410A indoor air conditioning unit. He said it was misleading‚ because the advertisement never said one needed the outdoor air conditioning for the indoor unit to work.
The ASA phoned Samsung technical support to check if consumers needed the outdoor unit to use the indoor unit. Samsung confirmed the indoor unit needed the matching outdoor unit‚ because they were installed back-to-back.
“The two should not be sold separately. It therefore seems that the complainant’s (Malherbe’s) version is correct.”
The ASA checked DionWired’s website “to see if this information was apparent from the surrounding material‚ and it was not”.
The ASA tried to get a response from DionWired‚ but to no avail. It assumed DionWired was not an ASA member over which it had no jurisdiction. The product was removed when the publication visited DionWired’s website on Friday afternoon.
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