Land Rover has been told by the Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland to stop running an ad featuring Irish celebrity gardener Diarmuid Gavin after complaints about “greenwashing”.
Dublin Commuter Coalition’s Feljin Jose was one of a number of people who raised issues about its sustainability claims. The advertisement was one of four featured in the firm’s ‘sparkling change’ series with brand ambassadors.
It suggested Mr Gavin’s move to a €76,500 Land Rover Defender Hard Top “fits in with his sustainability goals as it has mild hybrid technology”.
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Feljin told the Mirror: “This type of greenwashing is common in the car industry around the world and has a disastrous effect on our health and our climate. It has resulted in the proliferation of large SUVs on our roads which we also know pose a much higher danger to other road users - especially pedestrians and people on bikes.
“Getting one ad taken down doesn’t solve the issue. There are other misleading greenwashing ads out there. I would encourage people to call them out whenever they see them.”
The Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland received 28 complaints about the ad which appeared in national newspapers and online. It noted that the complaints raised six separate issues. It upheld the complaints relating to three of these issues and did not uphold the other three.
They said several complainants objected to the ad on “greenwashing” grounds as it burns fossil fuels and “3-litre engine which emitted particulate matter and therefore was a source of pollution”.
One suggested the “indication consumers should buy a large SUV to help the planet was misleading”. Others “did not consider the sustainability claim could be made when you took the car’s manufacture and operation into consideration”.
In their response to the ad watchdog, Land Rover said “they take all complaints seriously”. They added that the “mild hybrid technology [in the SUV] delivered a saving of 6g/km of Co2”, is better than previous engines and was tested to the stringent global standards.
ASAI upheld complaints about “greenwashing” as well as the fact the vehicle was shown parked on a footpath and double yellow line, which is prohibited and told them not to run the ad again.
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The watchdog said in its report: “The Committee noted that the collective complaints predominantly concerned a suggestion of greenwashing related to the advertised product engine type, its overall size and emissions. They noted the response outlining the technology involved in the vehicle and that it was more economical than the engines it superseded.
“The Committee also noted that the advertising has used qualified sustainability phrases such as ‘planting the seeds of a more sustainable life’, ‘sustainability goals’, ‘bridging the gap to a more sustainable vehicle’, ‘staging post on the way to going full electric’ and ‘small switches they’re making on their sustainability journeys’.”
They added: “Evidence demonstrating that the vehicle justified being associated with sustainability claims, albeit qualified, had not been submitted” and so it found the firm had breached three sections of the advertisers code.
They did not uphold complaints Land Rover had misled consumers by not outlining the difference between hybrid and mild hybrid technology or that it was seeking to suggest its vehicle is more economical than other SUVs.
Land Rover has been contacted for a comment.
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