The website, operated by Stop Go Network, stated: “Rudolph’s Readies brighten up Christmas with a £1,000 Cash Loan Apply Now”, marketing itself to individuals with “temporary cash flow problems”.
It also featured a three point summary of the loan application process with a snowman next to a laptop, an envelope with an “Xmas” card poking out, and a Santa next to a stack of money.
Stop Go Networks came under fire in February last year when the ASA censured the use of smiling cartoon pigs from another of its payday loan websites, Payday Pig.
The complainant challenging Rudolph’s Readies queried whether the ad was irresponsible, because it trivialised the decision to take out a short-term loan and promoted a casual attitude to using a loan to fund Christmas spending.
Additional text on the website read: “Bring a little cheer this Christmas. Get a fast Cash Loan up to £1000 Today. Christmas is an expensive time of year, with extra heating and food bills as well as those emergencies that seem more common in winter”.
In response to the complaint, Stop Go Networks said the ad was clear that short-term loans were expensive and should only be used for emergencies and that their website name had received approval from the Office of Fair Trading.
It added that it had disabled the website shortly after being contacted by the ASA.
The complaint was upheld by the ASA which acknowledged that while the ad included a warning that late repayment could cause borrowers “serious money problems”, it highlighted concern over the use of its use of imagery combined with statements such as “Brighten up Christmas with a £1000 Cash Loan”.
The ASA said: “The cartoon images used in the ad made light of the decision to take out a loan and promoted a casual attitude to using a loan to fund Christmas spending.”
It concluded the ad was irresponsible and breached responsible advertising rules.
According to a report by MoneySupermarket, research carried out for BBC Newsnight found that two-thirds of mortgage brokers have had clients whose mortgage applications have been rejected because they have had a payday loan in the past.
