Misleading advertising by estate agents or development marketing companies

It often happens that the flats the owners bought are a far cry from the scale models, brochures, computer-generated images and digital videos produced to market them, which, as technology advances, are increasingly spectacular and make the properties look very appealing, with the best possible appearance, in order to sell them.

The seller must therefore take responsibility for the advertising carried out, even if the advertising for the homes was not produced or delivered to the buyers by the Developer, but may have been produced by another sales and marketing company. If in that advertising the homes were offered “with a selection of high-quality finishes”, that must also be honoured.

This is laid down in Royal Decree 515/1989 of 21 April on Consumer Protection regarding the information to be provided in the Sale and Rental of Homes, which applies to offers, promotion and advertising for the sale of homes. Clearly, whether the developer did it directly or hired a marketing company to sell the homes in the development, the former will necessarily be answerable to consumers for the activity of the latter, so all the information, features and conditions relating to the construction of the home, its location, services and installations included in the offer, promotion and advertising will be enforceable, even if they do not expressly appear in the contract signed.

BE CLEAR THAT: If certain qualities were offered in the advertising, the developer cannot now deny their contractual effect by hiding behind the fact that the marketing was carried out by a third company, because the developer is responsible for everything done by the third company it hired and entrusted with the marketing, including the advertising that company produces for that purpose, and a home marketed with certain advertising can be required to meet the terms advertised.

Therefore, if you have contacted the Developer (who sold you the home) and it has replied that someone else produced the advertising, or the brochures with very attractive photographs, etc., taking certain “liberties”, and that the developer has no connection with the advertising carried out, you should not accept that, because the owners bought on the basis of the quality required and with the advertising produced as their reference -whether directly by the Developer or by the Marketing Company-. If you have any questions, please consult us for advice.