COMPLAINTS AGAINST ADVERTISEMENTS
Complaints about All Forms of Advertising
Under the AANA’s system, complaints about all forms of advertising
are channelled through the Advertising
Standards Bureau to provide a single and easily accessible
point of contact for the public.
If a complaint about any advertisement involves issues covered
in the second part of the Advertiser Code of Ethics — including discrimination,
vilification, violence, sex, sexuality, nudity, alarm and distress to
children, language, and health and safety — the Advertising Standards
Board (ASB) will consider it. The Advertising Standards Bureau will then
notify the complainant and advertiser of the decision.
Complaints about Specific Alcohol Advertisements
If a complaint about an alcohol beverage advertisement involves issues
covered in the second part of the Advertiser Code of Ethics — including
discrimination, vilification, violence, sex, sexuality, nudity, alarm
and distress to children, language, and health and safety — the Advertising
Standards Board (ASB) will consider it as outlined above. The Advertising
Standards Bureau will then notify the complainant and advertiser, as well
as the ABAC Management Committee, of the decision.
If a complaint about an advertisement for an alcohol beverage
is outside the second part of the AANA Advertiser Code of Ethics, the
Bureau will refer it to the ABAC Complaints Adjudication Panel.
Occasionally a complaint about an alcohol advertisement may
relate to both taste and decency issues (covered by the Code of Ethics)
and additional concerns relating to the special attributes of the product.
In these cases, each of the complaint mechanisms handles that part of
the issue within their jurisdiction — i.e. the ASB will determine
the issues covered by the Code of Ethics and the ABAC Complaints Adjudication
Panel will consider those issues outside the Code of Ethics.
ABAC Complaints Adjudication Panel
Under ABAC, an independent Complaints Adjudication Panel assesses any
complaints about alcohol advertisements not covered by the AANA’s
Code of Ethics, to ensure unbiased interpretation of the Code and independent
adjudication on any complaint about alcohol beverages advertising.
To ensure consistent and effective decision making, three
active panel members decide any complaints. Additional panel members are
available to stand in when needed. Consistent with community expectations,
all panel members represent broad, mainstream values. They are independent
of the alcohol industry and do not represent any particular interest group.
The Chief Adjudicator of the ABAC Complaints Adjudication
Panel presides over the adjudication process and advises the Advertising
Standards Bureau (ASB), the advertiser and the ABAC Management Committee,
in writing, of the reasons for and outcome of the Panel’s decisions.
These comprehensive reports regularly run to five pages or more. The ASB
then communicates the results to the complainant and to other interested
parties.
How to Make a Complaint about an Alcohol Advertisement
If you wish to complain about an advertisement for an alcohol beverage
product, you should make your complaint in writing, including:
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Name of advertiser and/or
product |
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Description of the advertisement
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When and where you saw or heard it
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Reasons for your concerns |
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Your name and
postal address and send it to: |
Advertising Standards Board
Level 2, 97 Northbourne Avenue
TURNER ACT 2612
Fax: (02) 6262 9833
Email: asb@advertisingstandardsbureau.com.au
Web: www.advertisingstandardsbureau.com.au
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