Blind brand endorsement sparks debate

Blind brand endorsement by celebrities or influencers has sparked a debate due to the absence of specific legislation, but legal experts and industry insiders claim that those who are endorsing a business entity must check the credibility of the product or service.

The debate was stoked when former national cricket team captain and Member of Parliament Mashrafe Bin Mortaza shrugged off his liabilities on the authenticity of e-commerce platform e-Orange while talking to several media outlets. The celebrity performed in several e-Orange advertisements claiming he trusts the company which cheated many customers.

Mashrafe said, “I am not responsible as I am not a shareholder of the company. I have tried to help customers as I could in good faith. The e-commerce platform had a trade licence when the endorsement offer came to me.”

But Iqbal Hossain, one of the aggrieved customers attending a demonstration against e-Orange, said in tears, “I trusted the claims of Mashrafe as I’m one of his avid fans, and now I’m stuck with the uncertainty of Tk7 lakh worth of products.” 

Like e-Orange, several others e-commerce companies have signed up with media savvy personalities for promoting their brands. The list includes cricketer Shakib Al Hasan for Alesha Card of Alesha Holdings Limited, musician and actor Tahsan Rahman Khan for Evaly, among many others.

Legal experts said the lack of concrete legislation to oversee the benefits of consumers makes it easy for personalities to use their reputation to sell flawed products or services.

They said a class-action lawsuit or mass tort could be filed even by a victim to compensate all the respected victims.

Selling of any product or services on the part of a company buoyed by false claims may invite the danger of facing lawsuit for misrepresentation and fraud under The Contract Act of 1872 of Bangladesh.

Talking to The Business Post, Supreme Court lawyer Barrister Jyotirmoy Barua said, “If a consumer, inspired by a brand ambassador, buys a product or service, but does not get the claimed benefit or is harmed by the service, he/she can lodge a case in both criminal and civil courts against the company that sells flawed products.”

Supreme Court lawyer SM Aslam said, “From the view of jurisprudence, to hold Mashrafe liable for deceiving consumers from his responsible position is very logical and it can be done under Tortious liability law.”

Despite being a unique case in Bangladesh, it can be an initiative in the country’s legal arena, calling for introduction of tort law and some related laws. A class-action lawsuit can be filed even by a victim; and if he gets compensation, then all other victims will receive the same treatment, he added.

Barrister Jyotirmoy said cases in both civil and criminal court can be filed for this suffering.

However, Aslam suggests filing a writ petition with the High Court rather than filing a case in lower court may help getting a prompt solution.

He said, “The regulatory authorities entrusted with safeguarding the rights of consumers are also liable. For this, the plaintiff has to display in front of the court that the failure of the government agencies concerned have resulted in this damages or sufferings.”

People in Bangladesh’s endorsement sector said their liability depends on the agreements signed between the companies and the crowd-pleasers.

Actress Bidya Sinha Saha Mim claims that her brand value is the priority to her rather than the money companies are offering her to endorse. 

“The common clause in all the brands I endorsed is that they prohibit me from endorsing similar products. And using the particular product depends on my will. But as I feel ownership towards those particular products, I usually use those products,” she added.

Barshon Kabir, manager of Cricketer Mushfiqur Rahim, said, “Before pitching a brand endorsement proposal, I brief about the company to the respected person. Whether he wants to endorse the brand or not, it completely depends on his will.”

Syed Gousul Alam Shaon, managing partner and creative chief of Grey Advertising Bangladesh Ltd — an ad agency— said, “Generally the endorser needs to consume that particular product or service. And when they claim that I’m using this service and you should use it too, they have moral obligations as people believe in them. In terms of the legal obligation that will depend on the clauses signed between both the companies and endorser.”

“We as an advertising agency feel this moral obligation and do background checks before proposing the celebrities to endorse the products. We mainly execute the liaison and negotiation with both parties to get the deal done along with the campaign. For this, we don’t consider to come under any legal liabilities,” Shaon added.