Carlill v. Carbolic Smoke Ball Co. 1891
Fact of the case - An advertisement was published by the defendant in the "P’all Mall Gazette
"£ 100 reward will be paid by the Carbolic Smoke Ball Co. To any person who contracts the increasingly epidemic influenza cold or any diseases caused by taking cold after having used the ball three times daily for 2 weeks according to the printed directions supplied with each ball. £ 1,000 is deposited with the alliance bank, regent Street, showing our sincerity. and due to these periods, many of the balls were sold.
The plaintiff, believing in the accuracy of the statement appearing in the advertisement concerning the efficacy of the smoke ball in case of influenza, or as a prevention of that disease, purchased one and used it as directed by the instructions. Later she had an attack of influenza.
Thereupon her husband wrote a letter for her to the defendants stating what had occurred and asking for the 100 pounds promised by the defendants in the advertisement. The defendant refused the payment of some,
Hawkins J. Gave e judgment for the plaintiff and defendant appealed.
Issue - whether a company’s advertisement constitutes a legally binding promise or rather, a sales puff, which had no meaning whatsoever.
Held - The defendants are interested in selling as largely as possible an article they call the carbolic smoke ball and they have great faith in it as an effective preventive against influenza and cold or any other disease caused by taking cold and as also useful in a great variety of other complaints. They are so confident in the merits of these things that they say in one leaflet that the carbolic smoke ball will never fail to cure all the diseases there is mentioned when used strictly according to these directions.
Here is the expression of making a promise to pay 100 pounds for a certain event, there is no mistake that a 100-pound reward will be paid by the carbolic smoke ball company to any person who contracts influenza after having used the ball three times daily and so on. They intended to make a promise as a 1,000 pound was deposited with the alliance Bank Regent Street showing their sincerity, it shows that this was not mere puff.
The deposit is called in aid by the advertiser as proof of their sincerity in the matter. it is to show their intention to pay 100 pounds in the event which they have specified. The advertisement words expressed that promise. The advertisement in point of law: is an offer to pay 100 pounds to anybody who will perform these conditions and performance of this condition is the acceptance of the offer. As happened in the case of Williams vs. Carwadine,1883 the acceptance of an offer must be notified, but in this case, it shows by the language and from the nature of the transaction that it does not expect and does not require notice of the acceptance apart from notice of the performance.
That advertisement begins by saying that a reward will be paid by the carbolic smoke ball company to any person who contracts influenza and the dependent says that contracts there do not apply only to persons who contract influenza after the publication of the advertisement but it might include person who had contracted influenza before, but a plane person who read this advertisement would read it in this plane way that if anybody after the advertisement was published used to three times daily for 2 weeks the carbolic smoke ball and then caught cold he would be entitled to the reward.
In the present case, the promise was put forward with the intention that it should be acted upon and it was acted upon, it says that there was ample consideration for the promise and that they are for the plaintiff is entitled to recover the reward.
