Britain’s largest hotel brand has been forced by regulators to change an advert for cheap hotel rooms following complaints.
Premier Inn had to change its advert for “£45 rooms” after two people complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) that they could not find rooms at that price.
The complainants told the supervisory authority that the advertisements were therefore misleading.
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How did Premier Inn react?
Although rooms for 45 pounds are available, they are only available in selected hotels, said Whitbread, the parent company of Premier Inn.
It was agreed to change the ad to say that the promotion is valid in selected hotels and to include a link to all participating hotels.
Because Premier Inn agreed to the changes, no formal resolution was made and no formal decision was published.
The company operates more than 800 hotels in the UK alone, making it the largest hotel chain in the United Kingdom.
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A number of complaints
This is the third time since May that the regulator has intervened in a Premier Inn promotion.
The first issue that arose during the period was the banning of an advert for hotel rooms for £35 as it was ‘likely to mislead’ viewers. Only a small percentage of all rooms were available at the discounted rate, the ASA ruling states.
Another complaint was resolved informally – like the most recent complaint – in July.
This marketing element needed to be revised to remove claims that buying early would get you the best price.
Premier Inn said: “The ASA confirmed that it had no concerns about the spread and availability of the offer during the promotional period. A significant proportion of rooms were available for £45, with a reasonable spread across the different days of the weekend and the duration of the promotion.”
