Sex, sexuality and nudity were the most complained about issues in 2015 accounting for 27% of complaints to the Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB).
The latest figures from the ASB come from its 2015 review, identifying who is complaining about ads, why and what people are most peeved off by.
As an example, Rebel Wilson's ad for Stan was called out last year for being "crass" and "offensive" for its play on the word pussy.
Who’s complaining?
The highest percentage of complaints in 2015 came from people in the 40-54 year age group accounting for 30% of all complaints received. The age group from 20-39 years were second highest with 20% of all complaints. The ASB says these ratios have been similar since this data began being recorded in 2008.
In 2015, females were most likely to complain than males, with 63% of complaints coming from women.
The percentage of complaints received from most States and Territories remained consistent with previous years, with complaints from News South Wales (30%) being the highest, followed by Victoria and Queensland (19%) being the highest.
Complaints about the issue of discrimination and vilification dropped significantly from 27% of complaints in 2014 to 15% in 2015. Language came in third highest at 14%.
People were most offended by ads that featured toiletries, including products such as razors, deodorant, tampons and sanitary pads. It was the most complained about product category in 2015, accounting for 14% of all complaints. Vehicles were a close second at 14%, but this was due to The Holden TV ad which received a higher number of complaints about the language used in it.
The ad was the most complained about in 2015, featuring a man driving and complaining about “bloody caravaners”. It even beat out the infamous Ashley Madison ads.
In 2015, the ad standard watchdog received 4,430 complaints, the second highest numbers of complaints in the past 10 years, although many less than the record number of complaints received in 2014 (5,735).
From the complaints, the board considered 471 advertisements, with an additional 30 withdrawn by advertisers before board consideration. Of the advertisements considered, only 80 advertisements were found to be in breach of the code, while 391 complaints were dismissed.
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au
Sign up to the AdNews newsletter, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for breaking stories and campaigns throughout the day.