• 05 Aug 2016
  • 4 Min read

The 5 most expensive typos in history

If you’re in the business of copywriting, you’re probably used to coming up with content ideas, researching a wide range of topics and writing numerous articles on a daily basis. However, although this might start to feel routine, don’t let yourself get complacent.

Picking up bad habits like doing less research for certain pieces or neglecting to ask others to proofread your work could cause you a great deal of trouble. Simple typos, for example, have been known to cost companies millions. Read on to learn about some of the most expensive typing errors that have ever been made. If these don’t shock you into being more vigilant with your copy, nothing will.

NASA’s £80m hyphen mishap

Mariner 2 Spacecraft

On July 22, 1962, NASA launched Mariner 1 to great fanfare. However, less than five minutes later, the unmanned spacecraft’s mission was abruptly aborted. As a result, $80 million went to waste and the potentially historic flight barely made it off the launching platform.

But what caused such a large and important project to suddenly come crashing down? According NASA, it was all down to a single hyphen that was missing from a vital piece of mathematical code. Arthur C. Clarke, a British science writer, dubbed it “the most expensive hyphen in history” in his 1968 book The Promise of Space, and this is likely still true today.

The 134-year-old firm that was ruined by an “s”

Back in 2009, family business Taylor & Sons Ltd employed 250 people and was expected to turn over £40m. However, that year, the government website Companies House mistakenly reported that the company had gone into liquidation. This caused the Welsh firm to lose a lot of business.

It was actually a similarly named, but completely separate company, Taylor & Son Ltd, that had gone bust. And, although the mistake was fixed within three days, it caused irreparable damage. Taylor & Sons Ltd subsequently went into administration and was eventually dissolved in 2014.

It has since been ruled that Companies House was responsible for the demise of the company, which had survived both world wars. The government has therefore been ordered to pay damages of about £8.8m.

The $500,000 eBay typo

Ebay logo

Back in 2007, a 155-year-old unopened bottle of Allsopp’s Arctic Ale, one of the world’s rarest beers, was listed on eBay. However, the seller had missed a “p” out of “Allsopp”, making the item more difficult for collectors to find. Therefore, the auction only received two offers and the winning bid came in at $304.

However, after spotting the error, the winning bidder relisted the bottle with the correct spelling. The second auction received a total of 157 bids and the bottle finally sold for half a million dollars.

The Yellow Pages’ racy blunder

An advert in the Pacific Bell Yellow Pages received a lot of attention in 1988 for all of the wrong reasons. A Californian travel service had placed an ad to promote their services, which included providing travel to exotic destinations. However, during production, the “x” in “exotic” was substituted for an “r”, meaning that the advert claimed they offered “erotic travel”.

This mistake damaged the company’s reputation and it lost 80% of its business. To make up for it, the Yellow Pages refunded the original $230 listing fee. However, the travel company responded by suing for gross negligence and was awarded $18m.

The creation of the “Sinners’ Bibles”

Centuries ago, in 1631, the royal printers Robert Barker and Martin Lucas lost their publishing licence for neglecting to include three crucial letters in a version of the Bible. They were also fined £300, the equivalent of tens of thousands of pounds today.

Their mistake meant that 1,000 copies of the Bible listed the seventh commandment as “thou shalt commit adultery”. By failing to include the word “not”, they created what have since become known as “Sinners’ Bibles”. King Charles I demanded that all 1,000 were burned. However, nine copies are thought to still exist today and one sold at auction for £15,000 in 2015.

 

All of these examples go to show that you need to ensure your writing is accurate at all times. While you might not be writing code for NASA or printing new copies of the bible, typos can ruin your reputation and cost you a lot of money if they cause enough damage.

So, be vigilant with your copy. Do your research, type carefully and get your work proof-read whenever possible. It could save you a lot of trouble in the long run.

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