‘Fixed’, ‘fuxed’ or ‘f***ed’? Athena Home Loans pinged by Ad Standards
Ad Standards has pinged Athena Home Loans over a radio ad where the word “fixed” is intentionally made out to sound like “fuxed”, over concerns about strong and obscene language.
The ad features a phone conversation between a bank representative and a customer, while the former had a very heavy New Zealand accent.
Customer: Hi. My home loan’s about to come off a fixed rate and…
Representative: Ha, well you’re fu…d
Customer: I beg your pardon?
Representative: I said “you’re fuxed”
Customer: Fuxed?
Representative: (Putting on a fake New Zealand accent) Yes, you’re on a “fuxed” rate. I’m from New Zealand.
A part of the complaint was in regard to the timing of the ad on public radio during the day. The community panel said it was played at school pick-up time and that the relevant audience would be broad and include children.
Athena Home Loans argued that it’s important to consider ” the broader context of the advertisement” and its comedic effect.
However, while the ad tried to cover up by saying that the person has a Kiwi accent, the panel said the swear word had been insufficiently censored and that it would be easily understood by the broad audience of the advertisement.
Another part of the complaint was that the ad ridiculed the New Zealand accent and was potentially racist, but that was dismissed by the panel.
“The Panel considered that while making fun of accents of minority groups in the community is outdated, in poor taste, is not funny and can be harmful, the advertisement’s tone is light-hearted and the portrayal the accent as obviously fake was ridiculing of the person in the advertisement, rather than New Zealanders.
“The Panel considered that the advertisement did not contain any negativity towards New Zealand or New Zealanders, and people who heard the advertisement would not think less of New Zealanders.”
Athena Home Loans has since discontinued the ad and begun an internal review of its advertising process.
This came after Sportsbet was recently found in breach of The Wagering Code by Ad Standards over a free-to-air TV ad, which was said to “imply a link between wagering and sexual success or enhanced attractiveness”
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Darcy Song was a reporter at Mumbrella, covering media owners, adtech and social platforms. She left in October 2023.
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Forgetting the obvious Ad Standards issues, this is just terrible advertising. Please name and shame the agency.
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