In recent years, the VitaePro supplement has been marketed visibly on several television channels. There have been many shortcomings in marketing, and features such as the terms of the order have remained unclear. At the request of the Consumer Ombudsman, NutraQ, which markets VitaePro products, is committed to correcting its marketing.
According to the Consumer Ombudsman’s assessment, VitaePro’s advertisement has created a misleading impression that the subscription is a trial order. Advertisements use expressions such as “Introduction Offer -50% No engagement period” and “Try at half the price without engagement period”. In reality, however, this has been a permanent subscription. The advertisements also omitted the trader’s name and the subscription period.
In VitaePro’s advertisements, important information has also been included only in the so-called small print. The Consumer Ombudsman estimates that the text at the end of the advertisement was written in such a small size that it was not reasonably readable by the average consumer. Relevant information must be communicated to the consumer in a clear, understandable and timely manner.
It has been possible to order products by SMS, in which case the regulations of distance selling must be complied with. Before concluding the contract, the consumer must be informed of the trader’s name, the subscription period and the consumer’s right of cancellation. In the VitaePro ordering process, this information was not provided in a clear and understandable manner.
“If the small print of a television advertisement flashes past in seconds, and you are not provided with more detailed information about its content and even in connection with an order, the consumer is relying on far too little information to make informed purchasing decisions. In permanent subscriptions, references to trials and experimentation are also likely to mislead buyers.”
At the request of the Consumer Ombudsman, NutraQ committed to correcting its marketing so that it would not be misleading. Advance information is provided when ordering by SMS, and relevant information is not hidden in advertisements in too small a print.