Groupon, the local deals giant, has just been busted by Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) – no pun intended. It’s no longer allowed to sell 24 hour deals for breast implant vouchers.
Back in April this year, reports The Register, a clinic in Manchester offered reduced rates on breast enlargement, (£1,999, down from £5,000), so long as customers bought a deal for it within 24 hours, as Groupon vouchers typically work.
The ASA ruled this week however, that impulse boob upgrades committed people into opting for surgery far too quickly.
“We noted consumers only had 24 hours in which to buy the voucher and because of that, we considered that consumers buying the voucher would have already financially and mentally committed themselves to going ahead with a procedure,” it concluded.
For its part, Groupon, which has seen its shares fall below its initial IPO price for the first time this week, says customers all had initial consultations, and 48 out of 85 customers had opted out by September. That’s a heaving number, but not enough to satisfy the ASA, it seems.
Is it boom or bust for Groupon? Let us know what you make of the daily deals site in the comments below.
(Via The Register)
