CTSI HAS ITS SAY Some of the institutes contributions to government policy debate Consumer Codes: 2015 review consultation Citizens Advice June 2015 The creation of a detriment eld would be an advantage, because measuring detriment is a useful way for trading standards services (TSS) to record the effect of unfair trading/scams on their residents. The data could also be used to show trends in scams, such as: The average cost of a postal scam to a resident in our borough is x, enabling TSS to target their resources strategically. The procedure needs to be clear on the difference between cost paid for the service and detriment to the consumer (for instance, the rogue trader charged 5,000 for the bogus roong repair, which the consumer paid 20,000 to have corrected. In this case the likely detriment would be 25,000 rather than just 5,000 or 20,000 and this needs to be recorded). CTSI cautiously welcomes the recommendation to allow more than one code within a code family to be assigned to a case, concerned that it could lead to many more referrals for TSS. Many cases will have a mixed civil/criminal referral if the multiple code change goes ahead. If a consumer was both deliberately mislead over the mileage of a car (criminal), and experienced difculty in utilising their consumer rights under the Sale of Goods Act 1979, would TSS need to go through double the number of referrals? CTSI agrees with: recommended purchase method codes and structure; the changes made to payment type; complaint type codes and structure; the creation of the scam code family and the scam types listed within it. Scams cause a great deal of damage to consumers and it is useful to see that these will be reported separately. The updating of codes to reect current consumer purchasing trends is welcomed, as would be making the system exible enough to be updated if the need arose. Lead officer: Adrian Simpson For more information, and to contribute to consultations such as these, visit www.tradingstandards.uk Credits Published You might also like Images: LoloStock / Shutterstock Tuesday 25 August, 2015 Consultations August 2015 To share this page, click on in the toolbar