Harold Shipman ad insurance firm has wings clipped

Dr Harold Shipman was one of the most prolific serial killers in modern history

A life insurance firm criticised for joking about serial killer Harold Shipman in an advert has had restrictions put on future campaigns.

DeadHappy used an image of Shipman alongside the line: "Because you never know who your doctor might be".

The social media campaign drew widespread condemnation, including from relatives of Shipman's victims.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has now ruled the firm's future adverts must be cleared by its risk carrier.

Shipman is believed to have murdered up to 250 people during his time as a GP in Hyde, Greater Manchester.

Approval needed

Leicester-based DeadHappy said it had used his image to be provocative but had removed it in response to complaints.

Now the FCA, which regulates the financial services industry, has intervened.

A ruling effective from 31 January states the company "must cease to communicate any further financial promotions that have not received prior approval".

This means future adverts will need to be cleared by Shepherds Friendly, which provides insurance for DeadHappy.

The FCA declined to provide any further comment to the BBC.

'Distasteful and inappropriate'

In response to the move, DeadHappy founder Andy Knott said: "In our attempt to be provocative and make people really stop and think about their need for life insurance, we have made a mistake and for this we apologise.

"We will now go away and immediately review all of our current and future marketing campaigns to ensure we learn from this mistake."

A Shepherds Friendly spokesperson said: "Upon being made aware of the advert distributed on social media on 23 January featuring Harold Shipman, we immediately expressed our view to DeadHappy that it was distasteful and inappropriate and asked them to remove it.

"We are committed to our values and this does not align with them.

"Following the FCA's restriction on DeadHappy's activities, we are ensuring those requirements are complied with.

"In addition we have given our feedback to DeadHappy regarding our expectations of their conduct in the future."

Meanwhile, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has said it is reviewing more than 50 complaints about the Harold Shipman advert.