Tesco Caught Out in Asda Price War

Tesco have got their wrists slapped over a Tesco TV advert earlier this year in the war against Asda who claim to put more change in your pocket in true Walmart style.

Double the difference?

The Tesco TV ad showed a range of products available at Tesco. The female voice-over stated "At Tesco, we understand times are tough, so we've lowered over 1,000 prices right across the store ... And you can now check the price of your shop at Tesco Price Check and if you find your comparable grocery shopping cheaper at Asda, we'll happily refund double the difference ..."

£20 limit

Text in the "FAQ" section of the website stated "Is there a maximum amount a voucher will be valid for?  We operate a fair use policy to prevent abuse. As such the maximum value for an individual Price Check Voucher is limited to £20".

http://asa.org.uk/ASA-action/Adjudications/2011/11/Tesco-Stores-Ltd/SHP_ADJ_153233.aspx

We considered that the £20 limit was a significant restriction likely to affect the average consumer's decision to shop at Tesco during the promotional period. Because the restriction was not included in ads (a) and (c) we concluded that they were misleading.  Because the restriction was only found in the fair-use policy for ad (b) we concluded that the terms and conditions contradicted rather than clarified the headline claim and therefore that ad (b) was also misleading.
Ad (a) breached BCAP Code rules 3.1 and 3.2 (Misleading advertising) and 3.10 (Qualification).
Ads (b) and (c) breached CAP Code (Edition12) rules 3.1 and 3.3 (Misleading advertising) and 3.9 and 3.10 (Qualification).

The Asda Price Guarantee says "If we're not 10% cheaper on your comparable grocery shopping we'll give you the difference. Guaranteed! "