Fiat Love Letters Frightened Women

In 1994, Italian automaker Fiat sent 50,000 anonymous love letters on pink paper to women across Spain while promoting the Fiat Cinquecento. The letters implied that a secret admirer had watched the recipients in public, leaving some women confused, anxious, or frightened and prompting others to seek escorts to work or contact police. Fiat planned to reveal the car in a second letter and offer test drives, but complaints forced it to cancel the campaign and send apologies instead. They were sued, and the Zaragoza High Court fined Fiat 15,000 pesetas and ordered it to pay 140,000 pesetas in damages to a woman who took the company to court.

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