Advertisers of financial products and services cannot blame the limitations of the medium in which they are advertising for failing to meet Central Bank consumer protection requirements, the regulatory body has warned.

"A restriction in advertising space or the cost of buying an advertisement is not an acceptable argument to avoid effective and balanced communication," the Central Bank cautions in a new guidance note which has been published on its website.

'Key information'
If "key information" cannot be delivered to consumers in a radio or television format, then the advertisements "would not be deemed appropriate for use".

In the first nine months of the year, the Central Bank has taken action against 178 advertisements that were in breach of its consumer protection code.

Regulatory disclosure statements – “[Full legal name] trading as [trading name used] is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland” – must be prominent and legible.

In the case of radio adverts the regulatory disclosure statements must be “delivered at a speed that is clear and audible”, its guidance note states.

It also stresses, following inquiries from “a number of regulated entities”, that the advertisers are not permitted to abbreviate their legal names or the name of the Central Bank of Ireland in ads.

If regulated entities use social media to advertise their products and services then the messages must contain the characters "#ad" and have a link to the web page for the product where all the information required by its code can be found.

'Proactive'
The Central Bank, which intervened in the case of 189 advertisements in 2012, says "it is, and must continue to be, proactive" in ensuring that advertisements that fail to reach its "clear, fair, accurate and not misleading" standard are amended or withdrawn as soon as possible.

The phrase “terms and conditions apply” is not a Central Bank requirement and should not be used a means to bury key information – defined as “any information which is likely to influence a consumer’s actions with regard to a product or service”– in the small print.