Just One Complaint Got This BMW M760Li Magazine Advert Banned

If you’re advertising a car in the UK, you have to play by some preposterously strict rules. Put pretty much any emphasis on speed, and your advert might get banned. All it takes is one complaint from someone with too much time on their hands.

For instance, Audi’s amazing “The Eye” TV advert was banished from UK TV screens last year after receiving a single complaint as it “linked speed with excitement,” and now, BMW has become the latest ‘victim’ of the Advertising Standards Authority’s merciless ban hammer. The ad in question was a print advert for the M760Li, which first appeared in Telegraph Magazine on 14 January.

The advert received only one complaint, from an individual who “challenged whether BMW had made speed the main message of the ad”. The ASA’s ruling goes on to state that the complainant “also noted that the Highway Code prohibited driving without reasonable consideration for other road users [does he want a gold star?],” and alleged the phrase “Luxury lost its manners” could be seen as condoning “irresponsible driving”.

In response, BMW said that it “had included the car specifications in the ad to inform consumers,” and claimed that the advert headline was a “subjective marketing term”. The Telegraph meanwhile said it didn’t think the advert focused on speed, and pointed out that 62mph is a lower figure than that of the UK’s motorway network.

Regardless, the ASA upheld the complaint, deciding the advert breached a rule that marketing material “must not condone or encourage unsafe or irresponsible driving”. The advert is now effectively banned, as it cannot appear again “in its current form.”