The High Court in Pretoria on Monday dismissed an urgent application by OUTsurance for comparison website Hippo to stop showing an advertisement that is apparently a parody of the insurer’s “Saver” advertisements featuring actor Katlego Maboe.
Hippo’s advert has been broadcast on various media, including TV and YouTube, where it had garnered some 548 000 views as of yesterday.
The ad has also generated discussion on social media, with many users saying the advert takes a dig at OUTsurance and Maboe. Most found the ad amusing, but others called for it to be boycotted and reported to the Broadcasting Complaints Commission for “exploiting Katlego’s personal pain”.
OUTsurance is definitely not amused. It says the advert implies it overcharges customers, and it infringes on its common law and intellectual property rights.
In the Hippo ad, a woman driver, called Sparrow, and a male passenger, who looks similar to Maboe, are in a car. The ad opens with the man saying, “We helped Sparrow switch and save on her car insurance.” At this point, the Hippo character, who is in the back, shows the woman quotes from Hippo on his smartphone. After discovering that she could have paid less for car insurance, she tells the man to get out of the vehicle. The ad ends with the man standing at the side of the road and the tagline “You can find better”. The man has a grin on his face throughout the advert.
OUTsurance spokesperson Natasha Kawulesar said the insurer believes the advert is an infringement of its brand properties, is misleading, and places the industry in a poor light.
“We support healthy and fair competition but do not believe this campaign satisfies regulatory and legislative requirements. Some of the content is inaccurate and clearly draws inference to OUTsurance and, by association, places us in a bad light with consumers. This is our point of exception,” she said.
In its High Court application, OUTsurance submitted that the advert:
- Creates the impression that OUTsurance overcharges the public and potential clients in quotations for short-term insurance, and it cannot be trusted;
- Constitutes an anti-competitive act;
- Infringes on its common law and intellectual property rights; and
- Contravenes the FAIS General Code of Conduct, the South African Insurance Association’s Code of Conduct, and the Advertising Regulatory Board’s Codes of Advertising.
The court dismissed the matter due to lack of urgency and ordered OUTsurance to pay the costs of the application.
Bradley du Chenne, Hippo’s chief executive, said the point of the advert was to “educate” South Africans about the benefits of comparing quotes before committing to an insurer.
“Hippo is not an insurance company. It just provides a comparison tool that fetches quotes from 11 insurers and presents them to the consumer to help them make an informed decision. After that, the choice is theirs to make.
“While there are a few insurers missing from our platform, they have been invited, and it’s their call not to participate,” he said.
In 2020, OUTsurance distanced itself from Maboe and removed adverts in which he was featured after a video of him confessing to cheating on his former partner, Monique Muller, went viral on social media. He also faced allegations of abuse, which he denied.
In January this year, the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court dismissed charges of abuse brought against him by Muller.
And where was the fairplay when Outsurance tagline was to cutt out the middle man.(Brokers)
Well done Hippo for leveling the the playing field