Used car website ordered to include 'non-optional charge' in its prices

A used car dealer’s website has been banned from using an advert after failing to include a mandatory “buyers’ fee” in its quoted prices.

The Advertising Standards Agency ruled that the Kent based Bapchild Motoring World must remove its web-site Bigmotoringworld.co.uk and include the £142.30 fee in its headline prices in future.

A complainant took issue with the site’s home page after noting that it featured a number of models accompanied with their starting prices.

Only after following links to detailed product pages did text at the bottom of each page state "All cars sold are subject to a buyers fee of £142.30".

Bapchild Motoring World told the ASA that they worked closely with Trading Standards and their current form of advertising was done in consultation with them.

But the ASA upheld the complaint, stating: “The CAP Code stipulated that quoted prices must include non-optional taxes, duties, fees and charges that apply to all or most buyers.

“Given that all cars purchased from Bigmotoringworld.co.uk were subject to a buyers’ fee, we considered that it was a non-optional charge that would be applicable to all buyers, and therefore should be included in the quoted prices on the Bigmotoringworld.co.uk website.

“However, because that was not the case, we concluded that the pricing information in the ad was misleading.”