Andi Peters reveals ITV lawyers told him he can’t call £99,999 a ‘life changing’ sum when dishing out prize money on daytime TV
- Andi Peters was told by ITV lawyers that £1 million was not a ‘life changing’ sum if it had been won by Sir Richard Branson, and was not a fair phrase to use
- Mr Peters says all prize money is subjective, and can make a big difference
- One viewer said her life was changed after winning £3,000 and fixing her car
He has become known for dishing out prize money on daytime TV.
But Andi Peters claims he has been left frustrated after ITV’s lawyers told him he had to stop using the phrase ‘life changing’ when discussing prize pots.
The TV personality said the ‘ridiculous situation’ meant at one point he was told he couldn’t even use the cliché when advertising a £1million competition.
He explained lawyers told him that if Sir Richard Branson had won the sum it wouldn’t change his life and therefore the phrase was not fair to use.
Andi Peters said that the ‘ridiculous situation’ meant at one point he was told he couldn’t even use the cliché when advertising a £1million competition
But Mr Peters, who has appeared across a range of daytime shows including This Morning and Lorraine, said he had seen much smaller wads of cash have huge impacts on people’s lives.
He told the What If? podcast: ‘We have this ridiculous situation where the ITV lawyers say you can’t say the word life changing unless it’s £101,000 or more.
‘And I always argue saying “I’m really sorry, £3,000 changed her life, she doesn’t have to get the bus to work anymore, so for her it was life changing”.
‘And it is all subjective. What is any sum of money.
‘Six years ago, we gave away £1million and they wouldn’t let me call the £1m life changing because – this is exactly what the lawyer said – “if Richard Branson won, it wouldn’t change his life”.
‘So we argued back and said “no, it would change his life, because in that minute he would be a £1m richer. That is life changing”.
‘Wouldn’t let us say it. I took this all the way. I went all the way to the top.
‘So now the rule is £101,000 and above is life changing. That’s the new rule. But if it’s ninety-nine (thousand) I can’t say it’s life changing.’
Reflecting on the viewer who saw £3,000 genuinely change her life, he added: ‘We do one where I knock on your door and give you £3,000.
‘So we did it, knocked on this woman’s door, gave her the £3,000 and I say “only”, I give away £250,000. This is in comparison.
‘But you have to remember £3,000 is a lot of money and she sent me a tweet two weeks later that said “just so you know, my car which has been off the road for a year and a half and I’ve been getting the bus to work, I now can afford to have repaired, I can now go back to driving to work”.
‘Things like that melt my heart. It’s £3,000 which to her was life changing.’
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