The UK’s largest hotel brand has been forced by the regulator to change an ad for cheap hotel rooms following complaints.
Premier Inn had to alter its ad for “£45 rooms” after two people complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) saying they couldn’t find rooms at that price.
The ads were misleading as a result, the complainants said to the watchdog.
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Pic: PA
How did Premier Inn respond?
While there were £45 rooms available, they were only at select hotels, Premier Inn’s parent company Whitbread said.
It agreed to amend the ad to say the promotion was at selected hotels and to include a link to all the participating hotels.
As Premier Inn agreed to the changes no formal ruling was issued and no formal ruling was published.
The business operates more than 800 hotels in the UK alone, making it the biggest hotel chain in the UK.
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A series of complaints
It’s the third time the regulator has intervened in a Premier Inn promotion since May.
The first issue raised across the period resulted in the ban of an ad for £35 hotel rooms as it was “likely to mislead” viewers. Only a small percentage of overall rooms were available at the discount rate, the ASA ruling said.
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Another grievance was also resolved informally – like the latest complaint – in July.
That piece of marketing had to be edited to remove claims which said buying early meant you get the best price.
Premier Inn has been contacted for comment.