Bizarre advertising campaign startles drivers
By: Drivers.com staff
Date: 2009-09-29
The billboards advertising campaign for Castrol engine oil bothered drivers on two counts - seeing your car's license plate number flashed on a billboard is, to say the least, distracting. Realizing that the 'billboard' knows what kind of engine your car has is a shock to those who care about privacy.
Last week the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (UK equivalent of the DMV) forced a shut-down of the ad campaign just four days into its planned two-week schedule. DVLA data, which includes vehicle manufacturer, model, age, and engine size had been purchased by Castrol from a motor industry data provider, who in turn bought it from the DVLA.
A DVLA spokesperson told Britain's Daily Mail "We have not provided any vehicle information to Castrol or received any fee from them in relation to their campaign. As soon as we became aware that vehicle information had been used inappropriately we contacted the organisation concerned to ensure this was stopped and are urgently investigating the case."
A Daily Mail investigation a few years ago revealed the the DVLA was making drivers home addresses available to companies in the business of clamping illegally parked vehicles. The DVLA said it has a legal obligation to provide the information to any one who can show reasonable cause. That includes car park operators and clamping companies.
Unfortunately, the latter included one company whose principals were convicted of extorting thousands of pounds from motorists. It also included MBNA Europe, a major continental credit-card and loan company, which sends emails to individuals offering them credit.
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