Andrew Butler explains how Hertfordshire Trading Standards has adapted its approach to Primary Authority with a focus on improving the service offered to enforcing authorities Why is it so difficult to get hold of anyone? Hertfordshire are in the pockets of big businesses. Why do I have to make a referral by fax? T Officers often commented that it can be difficult to get hold of us and that they didnt always receive feedback IN EVALUATION Two surveys were conducted by Hertfordshire Trading Standards to assess the performance of its Primary Authority scheme. In total, 172 colleagues who made a referral to Hertfordshire Trading Standards responded to the questionnaire, which was about the service they had received. The results G 54 per cent said they had received a better response from the Primary Authority officer than they had expected (37 per cent said as expected / nine per cent said response was poor) G 89 per cent said they received a prompt response from the PA officer G 71 per cent said the information on the PA Register was useful G 75 per cent used the PA Register to make a referral G 7.2 / 10 average score for overall satisfaction with the service provided by the PA officer Specific feedback Some of the comments received included: PA ofcer is always approachable and helpful Its sometimes difficult to get hold of the right person Well done, actioned quickly and referred to Tesco, who acted responsibly Responded back to my query very promptly, very helpful I have made a couple of referrals and was very happy with the response on both occasions it was quick and helpful hese were some of the comments I often heard when talking to colleagues around the country about our Home Authority and, now, Primary Authority (PA) work with businesses. Over the past year, we have worked really hard to address some of these concerns and perceptions. Weve been around the country talking to colleagues in enforcing authorities about what they want from us and how we can better support them. To date, we have spoken at 10 CTSI branch meetings and exhibited at the recent CTSI conference, to start to change perceptions and challenge some of the myths about Primary Authority and our approach. We have also carried out a survey of enforcing authorities, asking them about the service they have received from us and how we can improve. The results were encouraging, but also helped us to identify some improvements. Ofcers often commented that it can be difcult to get hold of us and that they didnt always receive feed back. As a result, we now publish direct-dial telephone numbers for all of our Primary Authority ofcers on the PA Register. We also have a hotline for businesses and local authority colleagues who need to speak to someone urgently. Because of the large number of referrals received, we would prefer contact via the PA Register, but we are very happy to talk to any colleague who just wants to have a chat about an issue before making a referral or deciding on a course of action. Hertfordshire Trading Standards currently has 36 partnerships across a wide range of large and small businesses, and receives around 1,200 referrals a year. We have committed to feedback on every one of these, even when a referral is made for information only, as is often the case. The culture of the team is about providing a quality service to enforcing authorities, giving them condence that we will deal properly with referrals and concerns raised. We often hear about how Primary Authority helps businesses to cut red tape, ensure consistency and reduce duplication. It does all of these things, but for Hertfordshire County Council Primary Authority is about taking a different approach to improving compliance. The carrot of assured advice can persuade our business partners to change their practices or improve processes, resulting in improved compliance. Often, we can achieve far more far more effectively by taking this approach, improving compliance and protecting consumers better than by the threat of prosecution or formal action. Supermarkets pricing is a good example of this. As Primary Authority for Tesco, we work closely with the Primary Authority Supermarkets Group and were instrumental in the piece of work produced with this group and the Ofce of Fair Trading (OFT) that looked at how price promotions in the sector could be improved. The result? Signicant improvements were made to the internal guidelines used by Tesco, while sophisticated monitoring tools were introduced to ensure products are not on offer for longer than they were available at the higher price. Additionally, multi-buy offers going into single-item price reductions are not permitted under the assured advice within our PA agreement unless specic approval has been given by us as the Primary Authority to ensure that consumers are not misled. These examples, plus a range of other measures, have contributed to signicant improvements in pricing practices and consumer protection. It was our work with the OFT and the Primary Authority Supermarkets Group and the carrot of assured Primary Authority advice that enabled these changes to happen. The recently published Competition and Markets Authority response to the Which? super-complaint found that there are still some examples of misleading practices by the supermarket industry. It also recognised, however, that problems are not occurring in large numbers and that, generally, retailers are taking compliance seriously to avoid such problems arising. Thats not to say prosecution of large businesses doesnt have a place. Hertfordshire recently prosecuted a multinational producer of domestic appliances at the same time as negotiating a Primary Authority Partnership with the business. A prosecution was in the public interest, but building a relationship of trust through a Primary Authority Partnership is likely to have far more of an impact on compliance than a prosecution ever will. We are still very keen to get your views about how we can improve the service offered to enforcing authorities, and to address the issues that are causing most concern for colleagues and consumers alike. So please get in touch you dont even need to send a fax! Call the business team hotline on 01707 281401 to express your views. Ofcers who have recently made a referral to Hertfordshire Trading Standards can still complete the survey online. I dont always get feedback Credits Published Andrew Butler is community protection Tuesday 27 October, 2015 manager trading standards at Hertfordshire County Council. 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