There is no period of grace for compliance with the new Consumer Credit (Advertisements) Regulations. Part of the DTI's reforms of the Consumer Credit Act, the measures aim to ensure that, from next month, consumers are able to compare and contrast products more easily.
All adverts offering credit must show a typical APR and this figure should be more prominent than any other financial information in the advert. In the case of on-line adverts the APR must be shown in characters at least one and a half times the size of the surrounding text.
Another duty placed on businesses is that at least 66% of the credit agreements granted by them must be at or below the typical APR. Each advertisement must also show the company name and its postal address.
The Regulations apply to off-line as well as to internet advertising and other forms of electronic communication such as teletext or mobile phones.
Certain minimum information must be shown "together as a whole" and the OFT observes that, as regards internet advertising, the consumer should be able to see all of the relevant information displayed on one screen, or by scrolling down a single page.
Information should not be hidden away or positioned where it is unlikely to be read. The OFT says it is essential when putting together your internet advert that the consumer is not expected to click through to part of the information, even if the link makes clear that other information may be found elsewhere.
The consumer, says the OFT, should not be able to apply for credit on-line without having scrolled through one or more pages containing all of the required information.
It also appears that pop-ups and banner ads should be avoided as they are not large enough to include all of the information required under the Regulations. It is not enough to include some of it with the remainder elsewhere. It will also not be of equal prominence, even if the information is shown in the same font size, says the OFT, which reasons that the pop-up or banner is designed to be more prominent and will be what the consumer sees first.