molEkuul_BE / luCkY BuSinESS / ShuTTErSToCk News Father and son jailed for selling tooth whitener 110 times over safe limit A father and son duo have been jailed for selling teeth-whitening products containing up to 110 times the safe limit of hydrogen peroxide. John Barry Hargreaves and Matthew Hargreaves were each sentenced to 18 months in prison at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court in Wales, on 16 September, after a three-year nationwide investigation byPowys Trading Standards, which had the cooperation of the General Dental Council (GDC). Their venture had been running for 10 years and made them more than 3m. One woman needed hospital treatment for burns to her mouth after she used their products. Trading standards began its investigation in July 2013 at the Royal Welsh Show in Llanelwedd, near Builth Wells. Officers were suspicious of claims made by the business, including banners that said the whitening product was suitable for people of any age and had been approved by leading dentists. An analysis of the product found harmful levels of hydrogen peroxide and it was later discovered the company behind the products had been formally dissolved several years before. The product purchased by Powys contained 11 per cent hydrogen peroxide 110 times the legal limit for products sold directly to consumers. The investigation was soon expanded to cover the work and actions of 10 local authorities. It uncovered the fact that the family traded at 150venues across the UK, as well as online. The law states that tooth-whitening products containing or releasing between 0.1-6 per cent hydrogen peroxide should not be made directly available to the consumer other than through treatment by a GDCregistered dentist. It is also illegal, under these regulations, for toothwhitening products that contain more than six per cent hydrogen peroxide or any associated products that release greater than six per cent hydrogen peroxide, to be supplied or administered for cosmetic purposes. The Hargreaves, from Southwood, Mereside, Knutsford, were convicted of running a fraudulent business under Section 9 of the Fraud Act 2006.Between October 2012 and July 2015, they used dishonest practices in making false claims about the teeth-whitening products and making false claims about which company was selling the products at events between October 2012 and July 2015. John Hargreaves wife, Jean, was jailed for six months, suspended for two years, after being convicted of offences under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 for similar matters surrounding making false claims about the products and supplier businesses. Both men were disqualified from being company directors for 10years, while Jean Hargreaves was disqualified for five years. false advertising conviction for estate agent over Sold sign An estate agent who left a Sold board on a house more than a year after it was first sold has been left with a bill of more than 1,600 for false advertising. Andrew Christodoulides, director of Jigsaws Estate Agents, admitted putting up the board, which is an offence under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, at a hearing at Highbury Magistrates Court. Christodoulides and Jigsaws were jointly fined 625 and ordered to pay 926 in legal costs, as well as a 63 victim surcharge. Islington Councils executive member for housing and development, Diarmaid Ward, said: Putting up false Sold boards is not only unsightly, but intentionally misleads potential buyers and gives the company an unfair advantage over its local competitors. Metric martyrs urge ministers to return to imperial measurements CorEpiCS vof / ShuTTErSToCk The UKs vote to leave the EU has boosted a long-running campaign to allow shops to sell meat, fruit and vegetables in pounds and ounces. The British Weights and Measures Association (BWMA) says shopkeepers have been calling them since the 23 June vote to ask if Brexit could mean a return to selling in imperial measurements. As it stands, grocers must sell produce in kilograms or grams but are free to display the equivalent in pounds and ounces next to labels. It is thought the requirement to sell in metric measurements could all change when Britain repeals the European Communities Act 1972 and formally leaves the EU. Warwick Cairns, a spokesman for the association, said: At BWMA, we dont want to go back to anything. We simply want to restore the freedom of choice that most of us in the UK have always taken for granted. He said he believed that a move to return to imperial measurements has public support. Sixteen years on from the outlawing of imperial measures in trade, aYouGov poll released last month showed that 45 per cent of more than 5,000 surveyed would like to see a return to selling food in poundsand ounces, compared with just 39 per cent who want to keep the metric system, he said. At BWMA we continue to receive growing numbers of enquiries from traders especially small shopkeepers wanting to know if they can start selling inpoundsagain. More than anything wed love to be able to sayyes you can. MP for Wellingborough Peter Bone backs the BWMAs campaign and has written to newly appointed International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, who is among the leading politicians tasked with negotiating the UKs exit from Europe, to urge him to back the plans. Agovernment spokesman said: Businesses can already useimperialunits alongside metric, or on their own for draught beer and cider, bottled milk and road traffic signs. This is national legislation and there has been no change to the law since the referendum result. Sleepless nights for devon Trading Standards over unsafe mattress sales Trading standards officers in Devon are reporting a tenfold increase in complaints about mattresses sold from the backs of vans. Complaints to Devon and Somerset Trading Standards say one seller boasted a saving in excess of 70 per cent on the recommended retail price of the mattresses. In most cases, however, the products are of bankrupt stock, dont meet fire-safety requirements or are secondhand or recovered. One mattress, purchased in South Molton from a man in a van, was sent for fire-safety testing by trading standards after the purchaser noticed it had a strange chemical smell. The independent laboratory reported that the mattress failed the match test when a flame was applied it caught fire, leading to what the laboratory described as unsafe escalating combustion.