The seal will be awarded to any promotions that comply with the law and with the industry's self-regulatory code, the British Code of Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (the CAP Code).
The ISP's legal advisory service will, for a fee, assess a competition, giveaway or promotion and tell a company if it is in line with the law and the CAP Code. If it is, that company will be entitled to place a badge on its communications demonstrating that the competition is ISP-approved.
The ISP charges a fee for its legal advisory service of £220 per enquiry.
"The ISP Seal logo will be a visible reassurance to consumers that a particular promotion or competition has been carefully examined and verified by the ISP’s legal and promotional experts," said an ISP statement. "The logo incorporates the URL for a microsite where consumers will be able to find out more about the ISP Seal."
"We hope that, over time, the public will come to look for the ISP Seal logo on promotions for reassurance that they are trustworthy, honest and ethical," said Annie Swift, chief executive of the ISP.
Companies which use the seal will be required to sign up to ISP terms and conditions tying them to certain commitments regarding the promotions, such as ensuring that consumers receive goods they are entitled to.
