The Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB) has upheld a consumer complaint against a Kia South Africa television commercial for the Kia Tasman, ruling that its depiction of people shaking uncontrollably could cause offence to people affected by neurological conditions.
In a ruling issued on 8 July 2026, the ARB instructed Kia South Africa to remove or amend the commercial "immediately as deadlines permit" after finding that it contravened Clause 1 of Section II of the Code of Advertising Practice, which deals with offensive advertising.
The complaint was lodged by a consumer who said the advert closely resembled symptoms associated with Parkinson's disease and other neurological disorders. The complainant, who has a close family member living with Parkinson's disease, argued that the commercial was insensitive because it appeared to use symptoms of a serious medical condition for comedic effect.
The television advert opens with several people struggling to perform everyday tasks because they are shaking uncontrollably, including carrying a box, reading a newspaper, drinking coffee and paying with a bank card. Later, the advert reveals that the shaking is intended to represent the rough ride quality of other bakkies, contrasting this with the smoother ride of the Kia Tasman.
In its response, Kia South Africa argued that the commercial's narrative made it clear the shaking was caused by the poor ride quality of competing vehicles rather than any medical condition. The company said visual cues, including a shaking exhaust pipe and the contrast with the Tasman, established a clear cause-and-effect relationship.
Kia also said the advert had been reviewed by an advertising law specialist before being aired, who concluded that it constituted acceptable hyperbole and was unlikely to be interpreted as depicting Parkinson's disease or another neurological disorder.
The automaker further argued that the commercial made no reference to any illness, that the movements shown differed from Parkinson's tremors, and that a reasonable viewer would understand the shaking as an exaggerated representation of vehicle vibration rather than a medical condition.
However, the ARB found that while the commercial did not intentionally depict Parkinson's disease or another neurological disorder, its opening scenes created a different initial impression.
According to the Directorate, viewers are first presented with people shaking severely without any explanation, making it reasonable for them to initially assume the characters are experiencing a neurological disorder. The later explanation linking the shaking to rough-riding vehicles, it said, does not erase that first impression.
The Directorate also rejected Kia's reliance on parody and hyperbole as a defence, stating that such techniques do not exempt advertising from scrutiny where the subject matter itself may cause offence.
"The Directorate must point out that it does not regard the depiction of a neurological condition as offensive in and of itself," the ruling stated. "Rather, when the apparent symptoms of such a condition are used as the basis for humour, and the product being sold is offered as an antidote to those symptoms, the Directorate finds that the Commercial may be perceived as making light of those symptoms."
The ARB concluded that the advert was likely to cause sectoral offence to people affected by neurological conditions and upheld the complaint. Kia South Africa has been instructed to remove or amend the commercial in line with the ruling.
