Two advertisements that show an army of trucks careening through the wilderness have been banned by a UK regulator for encouraging drivers to behave in ways that could damage the environment.
In a video advertisement for the Toyota Hilux that was promoted on Facebook, dozens of trucks are shown driving through rivers, forest and open land, while a voiceover describes the scene as “one of nature’s true spectacles.” A poster version used at bus stops in the UK shows the trucks alongside the slogan “Born to roam.” Neither ad can be shown in the country going forward after a decision by the Advertising Standards Authority, which said they “presented and condoned the use of vehicles in a manner that disregarded their impact on nature and the environment.”
The decision is the latest in a series of environmentally focused bans by the ASA, which launched a project centered on climate change and the environment in 2020. Most of the ASA’s rulings have focused on advertisements it deemed misleading; the agency nixed ads from Lufthansa, HSBC and Unilever, among others, for what it characterized as disingenuous climate claims.
The Toyota ads, however, were banned for failing to uphold a broader standard in the UK’s advertising code: that adverts be “prepared with a sense of responsibility to consumers and to society.” This is the first ad banned by the ASA for neglecting that standard when it comes to the environment, a spokesperson said.
It’s also the first time the ASA has banned an ad over its portrayal of off-road driving, a frequent trope in commercials for trucks and SUVs. In 2021, a Jaguar Land Rover ad showed the car in a forest accompanied by the tagline, “Life is so much better without restrictions.” The ASA assessed that ad but decided not to ban it, saying the consumer (at the time) would likely understand the slogan in the context of lifting Covid-19 restrictions.
Read More: 6 Ads Banned for Greenwashing in the UK
In its response to the ASA, Toyota argued that its Hilux ads, developed in 2020 by ad agency The&Partnership, are “fantastical,” filmed in landscapes that don’t look like UK countryside, and would not encourage a British consumer to copy the activities they depict. But the ASA said the ads showed cars driving realistically in a way that could encourage irresponsible behavior.
“The impression given by the driving scenes and messaging in both ads was one of driving regardless of its purpose, across off-road environments and natural ecosystems which had no regard for the environmental impact of such driving,” the regulator noted.
In a statement to Bloomberg Green, Toyota said it “does not condone behavior that is harmful to the environment,” adding that some of its customers operate in off-road settings. “The vehicle footage in this instance was obtained in a non-UK location, on private land, with all necessary permissions, in a non-ecologically sensitive environment,” the statement notes. “The static image used in the display ad was CGI, having no environmental impact on that land.”
Regardless of the terrain, cars in the UK are getting bigger. SUVs accounted for half of new car registrations in the country last year, and SUVs made up 44% of new EV sales, compared with 30% of all new car sales (including electric, petrol and diesel models), according to data collected by the Climate Change Committee and distributed by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
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The ASA decided to take on the Toyota ads following complaints from campaign groups Badvertising and Adfree Cities, which regularly highlight misleading environmental ads. Veronica Wignall, co-director at Adfree Cities, said her group also complained about a part of the commercial in which the trucks speed through an urban area, though the ASA did not ban the ad on that basis. Bigger, heavier SUVs emit more pollution and have been shown to be more dangerous to pedestrians.
“They shouldn’t show this rugged exploration idea when inevitably these cars aren’t being used when people actually need a four-wheel drive,” Wignall said. SUVs “are being sold on a false promise of rugged adventure, exploiting imagery of the natural world.”
Adfree Cities is calling for a total ban on adverts for SUVs.