Watchogs bans ad for ‘harmless cigarettes’
Claims that a brand of electronic cigarettes are “completely harmless” have been banned after a watchdog ruled that they misled consumers.
The website for Nicolites, which sells electronic cigarettes containing a cartridge holding liquid nicotine, said the vapour inhaled and exhaled by users resembled smoke but was harmless.
Another claim said it was the tobacco in standard cigarettes that was harmful, and nicotine was mildly addictive but did not pose a health hazard.
But one reader complained that the claims were misleading and could not be substantiated.
The Advertising Standards Authority upheld the complaint and ruled that the advert must not appear again in its current form.