August 8, 2016

The ASA has welcomed the outcome of legal action taken against Electronic Healing, a provider of complementary and alternative therapies and devices, by trading standards officers from the London Borough of Camden on behalf of National Trading Standards.

The ASA referred Electronic Healing to National Trading Standards on account of the company’s refusal to comply with the rules in place to prevent consumers from being misled by irresponsible advertising.

Following guilty pleas to offences under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations and Food Safety Act, the two owners of Electronic Healing were each fined £1,000.  They were also each ordered to pay £7,000 costs, as well as a £100 victim surcharge. Moreover, the defendants agreed to forfeit £7,000 cash seized on the day of the warrant.

Electronic Healing was subject to two formal investigations by the ASA, following which the company was found to be in breach of the rules against making misleading efficacy claims (specifically in respect of claims made on its website about products named “Bob Beck Protocol” and “Liquid Oxygen Drops”).  The ad claimed that Bob Beck Protocol “kills or disables microbes (virus, bacteria, and fungus) in the body” while Liquid Oxygen Drops were “credited with a multitude of significant health benefits from healthy energy to immunity and disease prevention”.  A video on the company’s website also claimed that The Bob Beck Protocol could “amplify the immune system, remove the need for flu vaccinations, increase oxygen in the blood, reduce HIV infection levels and help fibromyalgia”.

The advertiser failed to provide adequate evidence to support its claims and was placed on a list of non-compliant online advertisers on the ASA’s website.  Despite the sanction, the company continued to make claims that had the potential to mislead consumers.  Responding to these continued breaches, the ASA referred the company to Trading Standards for prosecution.

The case is a reminder that where an advertiser is unwilling or unable to stick to the rules and continues to mislead consumers or business the ASA can refer to National Trading Standards who will consider statutory action, including warnings and seeking criminal prosecutions or civil enforcement orders.  To read the ASA’s press release in full, click here.