Penalty for misleading advertising from the Ministry of Commerce

The Publicity Board of the Ministry of Commerce announced that at this month’s meeting, the board evaluated a total of 94 files and 80 were found to be in breach of the law.

The Board pointed out that in the first 7 months of the year administrative fines were imposed for a total of 43 million 733 thousand 953 TL, in addition to the suspension of 1,109 files.

In the press release of the Ministry of Commerce on the subject, it was noted:

At its 335th session held on July 11, 2023, the Advertising Board imposed numerous administrative sanctions, including access bans, on advertisements that mislead and mislead consumers, take advantage of their lack of experience and knowledge, and trade practices. disloyal

It was determined that 80 of the 94 files discussed by the Advertising Board at this month’s meeting were against the legislation, and it was decided to impose an administrative fine of TL 6,070,113 in total, together with the sanction of suspension, for the aforementioned advertising and commercial. applications, and also to apply an access blocking measure for 6 files.

Thus, in the first 7 months of the year, opinions and evaluations were issued by the Board on a total of 1,253 files, and administrative fines totaling 43,773,953 TL were imposed on 1,109 files that constituted misleading advertising or unfair commercial practices. , as well as an administrative fine of 43,773,953 TL, it was decided to block it.

CAMPAIGN PROMISES CONTAIN BREACH

The main item on the agenda for the 335th Board meeting was the major promise-exception mismatches in advertisements. The major promise exception mismatches mentioned above are seen to be encountered by consumers, especially in various campaign ads, with examples such as the lack of inclusion of campaign-based elements such as the maximum discount amount you can take advantage of and the minimum. amount of the basket necessary to benefit from the campaign, in a clear and understandable way.

In this sense, various sanctions were imposed on companies that mislead consumers and manipulate their purchasing decisions by presenting the main campaign promises in their promotions to consumers within the scope of various campaigns in a manner inconsistent with the exceptions of the Campaign. .