ASA ends Etihad Airways’ “sustainable aviation” campaign

What went wrong with Etihad’s claim about their commitment to “sustainable aviation” and why did the ASA hold it in breach of the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (the CAP Code)?

The question

What went wrong with Etihad’s claim about their commitment to “sustainable aviation” and why did the ASA hold it in breach of the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (the CAP Code)?

The key takeaway

For obvious reasons, the aviation industry needs to take particular care over green claims. From a wider perspective, absolute green claims are always hard, if not impossible, to justify. Specific, narrow claims are the way to go, especially from a substantiation viewpoint.

The background

In October 2022, Etihad Airways posted two ads on Facebook. They included pictures of plants and the Earth to promote their “louder, bolder approach to sustainable aviation” campaign.

In the first ad, the text stated: “We understand the impact flying has on the environment” and “With Etihad you’ll earn Etihad Guest Miles … every time you make a Conscious Choice for the planet”.

The second ad included the same text, as well as further text explaining that Etihad are “cutting back … on single-use plastics … and are flying the most modern and efficient planes. Flights with a smaller footprint”.

Both ads declared that Etihad were “Environmental Airline of the Year for 2022 in the Airline Excellence Awards”.

The ASA investigated whether the campaign was misleading, on the basis that the environmental benefits of flying with Etihad were exaggerated. In response, Etihad argued that “sustainable aviation” was not to be interpreted as the only solution to aviation-caused environmental damage – it was merely part of their wider aspirations to reach “net zero” carbon emissions by 2050.

The development

The key takeaways from the ASA’s investigation were that:

• the CAP Code stipulates that “absolute” environmental claims must be substantiated to a high level
• the first ad needed further context or explanation as to how “sustainable aviation” was being achieved
• the second advert failed to provide sufficient “qualifying information”
• the ads were aimed at the general public, so clearer language was needed to explain the claims
• no initiatives or technologies currently in operation by the aviation industry would have sufficient effect to fully substantiate an absolute claim such as “sustainable aviation”, and
• overall, the ad campaign exaggerated the impact that flying with Etihad would have on the environment.

The CAP Codes breached were: rules 3.1 (Misleading advertising), and 11.1, 11.3 and 11.4 (Environmental claims).

The ASA advised Etihad to prevent making misleading claims in their future advertisements, and to ensure that environmental claims are fully substantiated.

Why is this important?

This decision follows the ASA’s September 2021 statement, in which they committed to taking decisive action against misleading environmental claims in advertising.

In March, ASA banned ads from Lufthansa in which the airline stated they were: “Connecting the world. Protecting its future”. Other big brands to have fallen foul of the ASA on green claims recently include Ryanair, Oatly, Shell and HSBC. The ASA is showing no sign of softening their approach against greenwashing.

Any practical tips?

Businesses must of course continue to prioritise initiatives to improve their impact on the environment. However, UK businesses must ensure they communicate these objectives in line with the ASA’s guidelines. See our Spring 2023 snapshot for more on this. Essentially, and as demonstrated in the Etihad ruling, robust substantiation of all greens claims is essential. It is always easier to substantiate specific, narrow claims than broad or “absolute” green claims. The aviation industry, in particular, must maintain a sense of perspective when communicating green claims, in light of the industry’s overall impact on the environment.

Summer 2023