An advert by park operator Haven that offered four nights from £55 was misleading, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled.
The paid-for Facebook advert, for Haven’s Penally Court Holiday Park in Wales, was seen on 22 December 2024, by a member of the public who claimed they were unable to find a deal at the price stated.
The ad offered ‘Penally Court 4 nights from £55’, with small print at the bottom stating: “Price based on a Hideaway break in selected grades outside of school holidays.” It then featured a link to an advert on Haven’s website, which said: “Accommodation at Penally Court. Caravans 4 nights from £59.”
Haven Leisure Ltd said that at the time the ad was seen, there should have been five dates available for a ‘Hideaway break’ in 2025 at the advertised price points.
Instead, only one break was available to book because two had sold out and two had been incorrectly priced too high.
Haven added there was a lower availability of caravans at the Penally Court Holiday Park compared to their other parks, which it had not taken into account when making the price claim. That meant the advertised price points for Penally Court, in contrast to other Haven caravan parks, could have sold out after only one booking.
The ASA acknowledged the reason only one break was available at the advertised price was due to Penally Court being a small caravan park, and because of internal pricing errors, but concluded that the claims ‘4 nights from £55’ and ‘4 nights from £59 were misleading and could not be substantiated.
It added customers would expect a significant proportion of four-night breaks at the holiday park to have been available to book from £55 and £59. It also said it was not clear why the prices differed between the ads.
The ASA said Haven must ensure a significant proportion of breaks are available at the advertised price, across a range of dates, when using ‘from’ price claims in future.
