Twix TV advert banned after complaints it encouraged dangerous driving

A TV advert for the popular chocolate bar Twix has been banned following complaints it encourages unsafe driving. The ad, called Two is More Than One, features a 70s-style car chase with a man with long hair in a caramel-coloured car driving through a rocky landscape, with winding roads.

He spots another driver pursuing him in his rearview mirror and speeds up before cranking the handbrake, swerving off the right-hand side of the road, and rolling sideways through a metal barrier. The driver appears unperturbed as the car rolls down the hill before coming to a stop and landing on top of an identical car at the bottom of the hill.

The two vehicles are seen stacked on top of one another, roof to roof, with the same man apparently in both cars.

The top driver's Twix bar drops through the sunroof into the hands of the bottom driver, and the pair both push the gear stick on the ground level car and drive away.

Five complaints were made to the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) alleging that the ad was irresponsible and encouraged dangerous driving.

Confectionary giant Mars-Wrigley, which owns Twix, argued that the advert "was set in a separate world that was absurd, fantastical and removed from reality," and they ensured that the acts depicted in the sequence "would be impossible to recreate", Sky News reports.

The company, which also owns brands like Maltesers and M&Ms, said the cars "were shot driving at lawful speeds and any emulation would only reflect the legal and safe driving presented".

Mars-Wrigley also noted that the advert reflected the playful and absurd humour the Twix brand is known for.

Clearcast, the NGO that provides approval for ads before they hit screens in the UK told the watchdog that the style of the video made it clear to audiences that the actions depicted weren't meant to be emulated, and said the ad did not suggest "safe driving was boring," as per BBC News.

But though the watchdog accepted that the video featured "some clearly fantastical elements," it decided to uphold the complaints, saying in its ruling that the ads "must not appear again in their current form".

"We considered the road was clearly realistic," the ASA said. "The scenes were depicted as a chase with the emphasis on speed. In addition, the first man was then shown putting the handbrake on and the car swerved off the road leaving visible skid marks.

"We considered the emphasis on a chase, and the speed inherent to that, and the driving manoeuvres featured would be dangerous and irresponsible if emulated in real life on a public highway."

The ASA said in its ruling, it told Mars-Wrigley "not to condone or encourage irresponsible driving that was likely to breach the legal requirements of the Highway Code in their ads."

A Mars Wrigley UK spokesperson said: “We always take pride in maintaining high standards across all our communications and every advert we produce is submitted for approval through the appropriate review channels.

"In our view, this particular advert adopts a fantastical tone that is neither realistic nor intended to be imitated.

"Nonetheless, we take our responsibility as an advertiser seriously and never intended to cause any offence or concern, so we are reviewing the ruling carefully in order to work collaboratively towards a resolution."