Acceptable Ads Policy
Last updated: 27 August 2026
BrandMyX is operated from the United Kingdom. Company registration is in progress — the registered entity's name, number and address will appear here on incorporation.
Plain English: Stickers on real objects walk around in public where anyone — including kids — can see them. So some categories are out entirely, some need a human to look first, and every logo has to be a real brand with a working website. This policy is part of the Sponsor Annex: bidding means agreeing to it.
1. Blocked categories
Ads for the following are not accepted, full stop — no exceptions, no manual review path:
| Category | Why |
|---|---|
| Gambling and betting | Age-targeting is impossible on a sticker in the street. |
| Tobacco, vapes, and nicotine products | UK law heavily restricts advertising these — we don't try to thread that needle. |
| Cryptoassets and investment products | These are regulated financial promotions; a sticker cannot carry the required approvals. |
| Prescription medicines and cure claims | Advertising prescription-only medicines to the public is prohibited. |
| Adult content and services | Family objects go out in public. No. |
| Weapons | No. |
| Political advertising | Election law comes with imprint and spend rules a sticker can't satisfy. |
| High-cost short-term credit | Heavily restricted under the CAP Code — blocked. |
2. Gated categories — manual review required
These categories can run, but only after a human approves the specific brand, creative, and object. Expect to be asked for substantiation of any claim, and expect placement restrictions:
| Category | What approval looks at |
|---|---|
| Alcohol | Approved case by case. Never on objects belonging to or aimed at under-18s, never in school-adjacent contexts, and the creative must meet the CAP Code's social-responsibility rules. |
| Food and drink high in fat, salt, or sugar (HFSS) | Approved case by case, with child-audience restrictions applied to the object and its context. |
| Health, beauty, and supplements; environmental claims | Approved only where claims are modest and you can substantiate them if asked. "Greenwashing" copy fails review. |
| Other financial services | Financial products and services outside the blocked list are reviewed case by case. Ordinary business tools (accounting software, say) are fine; anything that is itself a regulated financial promotion is usually declined. |
3. Logo and creative standards
- Real brand, working site. Your logo must belong to a real brand or product with a working website, and the site you link must match the brand you upload. If your account email domain doesn't match the brand's domain, the logo is held for verification before the lister ever sees it.
- Print quality. Logos must meet the print resolution check (300 DPI at physical size). Low-resolution files fail; you get one 48-hour re-upload window after payment.
- No misleading claims in the creative itself — prices, awards, endorsements, and superlatives must be true and substantiable (CAP Code).
- No imitation of official markings — nothing that looks like police, emergency-service, government, or safety-certification marks.
- No NSFW imagery or text, no shock creative, no hate symbols.
4. Intellectual property
- You must own the trademark or have a licence to use every logo and mark you submit. Uploading someone else's brand is a breach of the Terms and of your indemnity.
- Rights holders can report infringement via the report form (reason: IP infringement) or [email protected]. We remove content promptly on a valid notice and may terminate repeat infringers.
- Parody, "joke" brands, and lookalike marks are treated as infringement unless you can show rights.
5. Placement standards
- Nothing on vehicle glazing, lights, mirrors, or number plates — the editor refuses these boxes.
- Nothing on safety equipment (helmets' certified surfaces, harnesses, and the like).
- Nothing from a gated category on objects primarily used by under-18s — belt and braces on top of the category rules.
6. The #ad rule
Sponsored placements are ads, and UK rules require them to be recognisable as ads. Listers are contractually required to put #ad at the start of the caption on any social post about their sponsored object — our share buttons pre-fill it. Sponsors must not ask listers to drop it.
7. Enforcement
- Rejection at review — for buy-now orders the uncaptured authorisation is cancelled and you pay nothing; for auction wins you are refunded per the Refund & Dispute Policy.
- Removal of live placements that later turn out to breach this policy, with refunds handled per the Refund & Dispute Policy.
- Strikes and bans for repeat or deliberate breaches, per the Terms.
- We cooperate with the ASA on any complaint about advertising carried on the platform.
Not sure which side of the line your brand falls on? Email [email protected] before you bid — it's faster than a refund.