ARB rules on RAF's morgue ad during Comrades Marathon

A ROAD Accident Fund advertisement, aired on a Sunday during the Comrades Marathon, showing a body in a morgue with a toe tag with the words “Car Accident” and a voice warning “Your trip should not end here’, was the subject of a complaint before the Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB).

- ZELDA VENTER

The advertisement, which is a message conveyed by the RAF for safe driving, sparked a complaint by a viewer, who said family viewing, such as the Comrades Marathon, should be safe spaces and free of distress to young viewers, such as his child, who saw it.

The directorate of the ARB remarked that as this commercial was broadcast on a Sunday afternoon, during an international sporting event, it can be assumed that children may well be watching television with their parents.

It, therefore, accepts that the commercial was likely to have been seen by children, even if they were not the intended audience.

It noted that the complainant's concern appears to be that the concept, and visuals, of a morgue, bodies, and death in general, are not suitable for daytime viewing when families are watching television.