Home / Publications / CMS Green Globe / News in Sustainability Claims / Belgium: New decision about an advertisement for an...
Table of contents
  1. Global Trends
  2. News in Sustainability Claims
    1. France: Extended Producer Responsibility
    2. Germany: New court decision: Advertising climate neutrality
    3. UK: Investigations by CMA into the fashion sector
    4. Switzerland: Initiative for recycling plastic
    5. Austria: “Greenwashing check” – Recycling
    6. France: Sorting rules (Triman and Info-Tri): hot topic
    7. UK ad regulator issues harsh ruling on “misleading” environmental advertising
    8. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Carbon credit market in The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
    9. Switzerland: Climate disclosures for Swiss large companies in force as of 1 January 2024
    10. Italy: Sustainability in the fashion industry
    11. Switzerland: Swiss Federal Council takes action against greenwashing in the financial sector
    12. France: Update on the Green Dot
    13. UK: CMA announces review into the FMCG sector
    14. EU Commission makes another push to prevent greenwashing
    15. France: Single-use tableware in on-site restaurants is no longer allowed
    16. Germany and the EU: New study on competition and sustainability in Germany and the EU
    17. France: Carbon neutrality claims
    18. France: Update on the Triman
    19. France: Update of the Practical Guide to Environmental Claims
    20. Switzerland: The Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) has included a new section on ESG risks
    21. Netherlands: Dutch regulator updates Guidelines on sustainability claims
    22. UK: Transparency in “green” claims: UK Advertising Regulator updates guidance on misleading environmental claims
    23. France: Annulment of the Green Dot penalty – CMS Francis Lefebvre, legal advisor of the claimants
    24. Germany: Court decides on Advertising of Climate Neutrality in two Appeal Proceedings
    25. Switzerland: Advertising of carbon neutrality at sports events
    26. Germany: German Court decides on advertising of climate neutrality based on a CO₂ compensation by a forest conservation project
    27. UK: CMA launches greenwashing investigation into boiler manufacturer
    28. EU: Stricter regulations to combat greenwashing and to empower consumers on the horizon
    29. Belgium: New decision about an advertisement for an SUV
    30. UK: ASA bans Toyota advertisement for promoting environmentally irresponsible behaviour
    31. Germany: New decision concerning CO2 positive and climate neutral production advertisement
    32. Mexico: New amendments to the Environmental Law for the Protection of the Land
  3. Common Trends for EU
  4. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Austria
  5. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Belgium
  6. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Brazil
  7. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Bulgaria
  8. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in China
  9. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Chile
  10. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Colombia
  11. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Croatia
  12. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in the Czech Republic
  13. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Germany
  14. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in France
  15. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Hungary
  16. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Italy
  17. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Mexico
  18. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Morocco
    1. Maroc - Déclarations de durabilité et écoblanchiment
  19. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in the Netherlands
  20. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Norway
  21. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Poland
  22. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Portugal
  23. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Romania
  24. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Saudi Arabia
  25. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Singapore
  26. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Slovakia
  27. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Slovenia
  28. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Spain
  29. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Sweden
  30. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Switzerland
  31. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Turkiye
  32. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in the UAE
  33. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in Ukraine
  34. Sustainability claims and greenwashing in the United Kingdom

Belgium: New decision about an advertisement for an SUV

November 2023

The Belgian self-regulatory body for advertising “JEP” (Jury for fair advertising practices) rendered a decision about an advertisement for an SUV.

The advertiser was an international car manufacturer, who introduced his new SUV model to the public, by showing a picture of it on a billboard. The surface behind and around the SUV model was entirely green and was composed by vertically growing plants.

A consumer filed a complaint with the Jury against the car manufacturer, accusing him of greenwashing. According to the consumer, the polluting car (which was not an electric vehicle) was presented (in the advertisement) in an utterly green environment, in the hope that the consumer would associate the car with an environmentally friendly means of transportation.

The Jury rejected the complaint, stating that the green environment in the advertisement points out that the car can be used off-road. The advertiser does not claim that the car has a positive effect on the environment and the public will not believe that advertiser is offering an environmentally friendly car. The decision of the Jury is available online in French: https://www.jep.be/fr/decisions-des-jep/land-rover-12-06-2023/ and in Dutch: https://www.jep.be/beslissingen/land-rover-12-06-2023/

This case shows that one can raise an ethical question about a car manufacturer offering for sale a not-so-green SUV in a completely green environment, but from a legal point of view, such advertising might not be misleading. Consumers know that presenting a car in a green environment does not necessarily mean that the car itself is “green”.

For more information on sustainability claims and greenwashing in Belgium please see here.

Key contact

Tom Heremans
Tom Heremans
Partner
Brussels
T +32 2 743 69 73

Return to News