Background
The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 marked a significant shift in India’s consumer law regime by introducing a structured product liability framework. The law expands accountability across the entire supply chain covering manufacturers, service providers, and sellers to ensure consumer safety, transparency, and fairness. In exercise of the powers conferred by section 18 of the Act, the Central Consumer Protection Authority hereby issues the guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022 to provide for the prevention of false or misleading advertisements and making endorsements relating thereto.
Applicability
These guidelines shall apply to –
(a) all advertisements regardless of form, format or medium;
(b) a manufacturer, service provider or trader whose goods, product or service is the subject of an advertisement, or to an advertising agency or endorser whose service is availed for the advertisement of such goods, product or service.
Compliance Requirements under the Guidelines
An advertisement shall be considered valid and not misleading, if it’s–
(a) Truthful & honest
(b) Avoids exaggeration of accuracy, validity, usefulness, capability or performance of goods/product
(c) Not present statutory consumer rights as distinctive features
(d) Not claim universal acceptance where informed or scientific opinion is divided;
(e) Not mislead on nature or extent of risks to consumer or family safety;
(f) Ensure claims lacking independent substantiation do not mislead;
(g) Comply with applicable sector-specific laws and regulations.
Occasional, unintentional lapses in fulfilling advertised claims during mass production/distribution shall not invalidate the advertisement, provided—
(a) Claims are achievable by a typical product specimen;
(b) Failure rates remain within acceptable limits;
(c) Prompt corrective action is taken to address consumer deficiency.
Advertisement shall not entice consumers without reasonable prospect of supply at the offered price. Adequate supply shall be ensured to meet foreseeable demand. Grounds for possible supply limitations shall be disclosed. Advertisement shall not mislead on market conditions or availability.
The advertisement shall disclose reasonable grounds where supply may be insufficient within a reasonable period or quantity, and in particulars:
(i) if the estimated demand exceeds the supply, such advertisement shall make clear that the stock of the goods or services is limited;
(ii) if the purpose of the advertisement is to assess potential demand, it shall be clearly stated such advertisement; and
(iii) the advertisement shall not mislead consumers by omitting restrictions, including geographic restrictions and age-limit on the availability of the goods, products or services.
No surrogate or indirect advertisement shall be made for goods or services whose advertising is prohibited or restricted by law, by circumventing such restriction and portraying them as advertisements for other permissible goods or services.
An advertisement shall be considered to be a surrogate advertisement or indirect advertisement, if–
(a) such advertisement indicates or suggests directly or indirectly to consumers that it is an advertisement for the goods, product or service whose advertising is prohibited or restricted by law;
(b) such advertisement uses any brand name, logo, colour, layout and presentation associated with such goods, product or services whose advertisement is prohibited or restricted.
Further that mere use of a brand name or company name which may also be applied to goods, product or service whose advertising is prohibited or restricted shall not be considered to be surrogate advertisement or indirect advertisement, if such advertisement is not otherwise objectionable as per the provisions set out in these guidelines.
Free claim advertisement shall–
(a) Not claim free if any cost beyond unavoidable response/delivery is payable
(b) Disclose consumer commitment for availing offer
(c) Avoid misleading free claim
(d) Not describe included package elements as free
(e) Not misuse ‘free trial’ for non-refundable/conditional purchase offers
A free claims advertisement shall not describe any goods, product or service to be free, if–
(i) the consumer has to pay for packing, packaging, handling or administration of such free goods, product or service;
(ii) the cost of response, including the price of goods, product or service which the consumer has to purchase to take advantage of such offer, has been increased, except where such increase results from factors unrelated to the cost of promotion; or
(iii) the quality or quantity of the goods, product or service that a consumer shall purchase to take advantage of the offer has been reduced.
Junk food advertisements shall not be shown during children’s programs or on children’s channels. Advertisements using gifts to induce unnecessary purchases by children shall be discouraged.
An advertisement targeting children shall not–
(a) depict or encourage unsafe behavior;
(b) exploit children’s inexperience, credulity or loyalty;
(c) exaggerate product features or create unrealistic expectations;
(d) promote practices harmful to physical or mental health;
(e) imply inferiority or ridicule for non-use;
(f) directly urge children to purchase or influence others;
(g) use misleading price qualifiers like ‘just’ or ‘only’;
(h) feature children in advertisements prohibited by law;
(i) use celebrities for products restricted or unsuitable for children;
(j) mislead on product size, performance or reality;
(k) exaggerate achievable outcomes for an ordinary child;
(l) misuse charitable appeals without clarity on benefit;
(m) link purchase-based promotions with direct exhortation;
(n) claim enhanced intelligence/ability without evidence;
(o) make unsubstantiated health or nutrition claims;
(p) advertise products harmful to children’s health or wellbeing.
No advertisement shall be designed, produced or published for goods or services that are prohibited from being produced, sold, provided or advertised under any applicable law, rules or regulations.
A disclaimer in advertisement shall fulfil the following requirements, namely:
(a) a disclaimer shall be in the same language as the claim made in the advertisement;
(b) the font used in a disclaimer shall be the same as that used in the claim;
(c) the placement of the disclaimer shall be at a prominent and visible place on the packaging and ideally be on the same panel of the packaging as that of the claim;
(d) if the claim is presented as voice over, the disclaimer shall be displayed in sync with the voice over and at the same speed as that of original claim made in the advertisement;
(e) a disclaimer shall be so clear, prominent and legible as to make it clearly visible to a normally-sighted person reading the marketing communication once, from a reasonable distance and at a reasonable speed.
Every manufacturer, service provider, advertiser or agency shall ensure that–
(a) all claims, descriptions and comparisons based on objective facts are substantiated and supported when required by Authority;
(b) advertisements disclose the source and date of research where claims are based on such studies.
(c) advertisements do not reference any person, firm or institution to confer unjustified advantage or bring them to ridicule or disrepute without prior permission;
(d) advertisements do not contain statements or visuals, whether direct or implied, or by omission, ambiguity or exaggeration, that are likely to mislead consumers about the product or advertiser;
(e) advertisements are framed to avoid abusing consumer trust or exploiting lack of knowledge and–
(i) avoid vague claims like “up to” or “prices from” and clearly specify fixed guarantee periods or prices, including minimum and maximum where applicable;
(ii) clearly disclose all material terms and conditions for lotteries, prize schemes or gift offers to ensure a fair understanding.
Provided that obvious exaggerations for humour are permissible if not misleading.
Any endorsement in an advertisement must reflect genuine, reasonably current opinion of individual, group or organisation making such representation and must be based on adequate information about, or experience with, the identified goods, product or service and must not otherwise be deceptive.
Where Indian professionals, whether resident in India or otherwise, are barred under any law for the time being in force from making endorsement in any advertisement pertaining to any profession, then, foreign professionals of such profession shall also not be permitted to make endorsement in such advertisement.
Explanation – For the purposes of this paragraph, “foreigner professional” means a person who is not a citizen of India.
Where there exists a connection between endorser and trader, manufacturer or advertiser of endorsed product that might materially affect the value/credibility of endorsement and the connection is not reasonably expected by audience, such connection shall be fully disclosed in making the endorsement.
Penalty & Punishment
Section 21: If an ad is misleading or harms consumers, the authority can order it stopped or modified.
Where the Central Authority deems it necessary, it may impose a penalty for misleading advertisements on the manufacturer or endorser up to ₹10 lakh, and up to ₹50 lakh for subsequent contraventions. CG may also may, by order, prohibit the endorser of a false or misleading advertisement from making endorsement of any product or service for a period which may extend to one year & for subs. contraventions upto 3 years
Where any person is found to publish, or is a party to the publication of, a misleading advertisement, it may impose on such person a penalty which may extend to ten lakh rupees.
Section 88: Non compliance under sections 20 and 21, shall be punished with imprisonment for upto six months or with fine upto twenty lakh rupees, or with both.
Section 89: Any manufacturer or service provider who causes a false or misleading advertisement shall be punished with imprisonment up to two years and with fine upto ten lakh rupees; and for every subsequent offence, be punished with imprisonment upto five years and with fine upto fifty lakh rupees.
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