Monitoring

Monitoring forms a large part of our work.

• We assess numerous ads in national and regional press and carefully chosen consumer magazines.
• We monitor TV, radio and internet ads.
• We draw advertisers’, publishers’ and broadcasters’ attention to ads identified as clearly breaching a Code and seek assurances of their withdrawal or amendment.

Compliance surveys

We also conduct dedicated surveys to assess compliance in specific sectors or media.  This research is usually targeted towards sensitive areas or those that have a history of problems, and allows us to anticipate trends and identify potential problems.  If we find ads that break the Codes, we contact the advertisers - and the clearance centres in the case of broadcast advertising – to ensure breaches are removed from ads.

In 2008, alongside our daily monitoring work, the Compliance team undertook eight surveys, looking at a total of 3,856 ads.  Thanks to the commitment of industry to advertise responsibly, our surveys show that the overwhelming majority of ads, more than 97% on average, are compliant with the rules.

Our completed surveys are published.  To read recently published examples, please go to Research and surveys section in the Resource centre.