ASA bans Pure Cremation TV ad for misleading consumers

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has officially banned a television advertisement for Pure Cremation today (17 June) after 12 complainants challenged whether it misleadingly implied its standard package included an in-person service. 

The commercial, which was broadcast in January, featured a woman in a home kitchen describing her late father’s funeral plan. The promotion included an on-screen disclaimer stating that the company’s cremations did not include a ceremony at the crematorium. 

Pure Cremation Funeral Planning maintained the advertisement did not imply the standard package included an attended service. 

According to the company, the broadcast aimed to show a private celebration taking place at home to avoid the expenses of a traditional funeral. The firm added that the advertisement accurately described its services, which complied with Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulations. Clearance body Clearcast supported the position of the advertiser.

However, the ASA upheld the complaints, finding that consumers were likely to understand that the plan offered more than practical arrangements for an unattended cremation. 

In light of this, the watchdog ruled that describing the cremation as “dignified” and the crematorium as “beautiful” suggested a ceremonial element. The regulator noted that the on-screen disclaimer was insufficient to counter the overall impression created by the dialogue. 

The ASA ordered that the advertisement must not appear again in its current form.

A spokesperson for the ASA said: “We considered that, in the absence of any service, the advertised plan was not one that viewers were likely to understand to be a traditional funeral.

“Given the plan on offer was not what viewers were likely to regard as a typical funeral, we considered it was important that the ad accurately and explicitly conveyed the nature of the service being offered.”

A spokesperson for Pure Cremation added: “The purpose of the ad was to show that choosing Pure Cremation meant families did not have to pay for a ceremony and that it conveyed the opposite impression to that alleged in the complaints.”