Summer 2010 Newsletter - Trading Standards Institute

Just the Ticket...
or maybe not!
So you’re gutted that you’ve missed
out on seeing your favourite band in
concert. They only tour once every
five years and the tickets sold out like
lightening. But hey, wait a minute,
didn’t someone say that tickets are
still available on the Web for the gig
you wanted to go to.
A trawl on the internet might raise
your hopes of getting into that special
concert, because it’s easy to find loads
of sites guaranteeing to supply tickets
for popular music and sporting events
– even when they have already sold
out or maybe haven’t officially gone
on sale yet. Just beware before
purchasing those elusive tickets on
line - it might be a scam!
Trading Standards are trying to
increase awareness of fake ticket
websites and provide ticket buyers
with helpful and practical advice on
how to avoid being scammed. There
are many legitimate ticketing websites,
and scammers make their sites look
genuine, so it’s really easy to get taken
in unless you know what to look for.
The scammers don’t just limit their
activities to fake ticketing websites –
they also try to catch the unwary by
peddling those sought after tickets on
eBay and social networking sites.
So what can you expect if you order and
pay for tickets from a dodgy internet
supplier. At best you might get some
tickets sent to you – but there’s a good
chance that these may be counterfeit
copies and will be rejected when you try
to enter the venue. At worse, you’ll
never see any tickets. Your calls and
emails will either go unanswered, or
you’ll be told a representative will meet
you at the venue - but nobody will turn
up. You’ll be left out of pocket and
unable to attend the event.
Here are a few useful tips to help you
avoid falling victim to a ticket scam:
❃ Beware of sites selling tickets to
events that haven’t gone on sale yet
or guarantee tickets to events that
have been sold out for months.
❃ Put the website name into a search
engine like Google to see what you
can find out.
❃ Make sure the company behind the
website provides a full address for
their business, not just a Post Office
or mail box number. And be wary
of buying from a site that only gives
an email address or mobile phone
number.
❃ Ask for details. What type of ticket
are you buying? What is the face
value of the ticket and how much
is it being sold for? Are there any
additional charges? When will the
ticket be dispatched and how will
you be notified? What is their policy
on refunds if things go wrong?
❃ Pay by credit card. Under Section
75 of the Consumer Credit Act,
your card issuer is jointly liable for
the failure to provide goods or
services if the cash price of a single
ticket is over £100.
If you find you’ve been scammed,
recovering your money can be very
difficult. If you paid by credit card,
contact your card issuer in writing as
soon as you suspect you’ve been
conned. If you paid by debit card, you
are not covered by the Consumer Credit
Act, and there is no legal obligation on
the card provider to reimburse you.
However, you may still be able to ask for
money back under the ‘chargeback’
procedure operated by members of the
Visa and Mastercard schemes. Ask your
bank if this is possible. Also, check
whether your home insurance policy
covers you for fraud.
If you want further advice or think
you’re the victim of a ticket scam, call
Consumer Direct on 08454 04 05 06.
Sheffield Food
Festival
The Sheffield Food Festival was held in
the first week in June with events
taking place across the city to
promote healthy eating and give local
producers the opportunity to display
their delicious foods.
Amongst the events which appealed
to all ages were a ‘Grow Your Own
Zone’, which aimed to encourage the
people of Sheffield to revert to the ‘au
natural’ way of life.
‘Deliciously Yorkshire’ hosted a good
food demonstration, with local chefs
giving top tips on how to produce
dishes like the professionals, and
offering sourcing and tasting
opportunities. Italian and Sheffield
food vendors provided an authentic
taste of the continent and a showcase
of fresh local produce.
Sheffield Trading Standards were
there to promote healthy eating and
encourage the public to reduce their
salt and saturated fat intake. Particular
emphasis was given to raising
awareness of the excessive levels of
salt found in take away foods. Officers
showed visitors to the stand the high
levels of salt found in some products
tested by Trading Standards. One
Chinese take away meal was found to
have an incredible 8.6g of salt in one
portion!
Adults should consume less than 6g of
salt per day, and children much less.
Excess salt consumption can lead to
serious health problems including
high blood pressure, strokes, heart
attacks, osteoporosis, cancers and
kidney disease.
High Saturated Fat intake can raise the
level of cholesterol in the blood over
time and this can increase your
chances of developing heart disease.
Men should consume no more than
30g of Saturated Fat per day and
women no more than 20g.
Make sure you look at the labels of the
foods you buy and try to make
healthier choices. More information
can be found at www.eatwell.gov.uk
and www.actionsalt.org.uk.
South Yorkshire householders are
being warned to exercise extreme
caution if they receive phone calls
from traders offering to fit “free”
burglar alarm systems.
Trading Standards have received
numerous complaints that certain
companies are both using scare
tactics - such as exaggerating the level
of crime in local areas - as well as
offering free burglar alarms as an
enticement to obtain an appointment
with customers. If customers agree to
an appointment, they are visited in
their home by a company
representative and pressured into
signing a contract for goods and
sevices reportedly costing thousands of
pounds. Calls to Trading Standards
indicate that those being targeted by
these unscrupulous companies are the
elderly and vulnerable.
Complainants who contacted
Rotherham Trading Standards have
reported that one company claims to
be calling in connection with crime
research. Other callers have reported
that the particular trader claims to be
working with the Police or as part of a
Government scheme, neither of
which are correct.
Householders are strongly advised not
to accept appointments from traders
who use ‘cold calling’ methods. A
Rotherham Trading Standards
spokesman said: “Although it is not
illegal to cold call customers, we
advise residents not to be rushed into
purchasing alarm systems or any
goods from such callers until they
have taken our advice first. Residents
should take their time and do some
research by comparing lots of
different products and prices before
making a decision. We urge anybody
who has contact with an elderly or
vulnerable person to talk to them
about this issue.”
High pressure sales tactics
set alarm bells ringing
Consumers who sign such contracts
for cash purchases over £35 at home,
or away from the supplier’s business
premises, must be given a written
notice of their right to cancel. They
may then cancel within seven days
following the making of the contract.
If consumers agree in writing for the
trader to start work straight away but
then cancel within the seven-day
cooling off period, they may, in some
circumstances, have to pay for any
work carried out up to the time they
cancel. Consumers should seek
immediate advice from Consumer
Direct in these circumstances.
If Consumers sign a Credit Agreement
at home following face to face contact
with the supplier they must be given
notice of their cancellation rights.
These should be written into the
agreement which they sign and they
must be given a copy of the
agreement at the time they sign. They
should also then receive either a
second copy of the agreement
through the post, or a separate notice
of cancellation rights. Consumers
then have five days to cancel starting
from the day following the receipt of
this second posted copy or notice.
However it would be better not to
sign in the first place unless
consumers are absolutely sure they
are getting a good deal and wish to
be bound by the agreement.
If consumers have been misled by false
statements made by traders they may
in certain circumstances still be able to
terminate the agreement outside these
cancellation periods but would need to
take legal advice on their rights.
Consumers who have been contacted
by such companies should phone
Consumer Direct on 08454 04 05 06
as a matter of urgency, regardless of
whether they have made a purchase
or not.
Householders are also advised to
register with the Telephone
Preference Service on 0845 070 0707
if they do not wish to receive
unsolicited calls.
Shops sell
cigs to kids
Trading Standards officers
in Barnsley carried out a
series of test purchases for
illegal sales of tobacco during February
and March. Out of 30 premises visited,
seven shops sold cigarettes to the
underage test purchase volunteers.
Susan Dewar, Principal Trading
Standards Officer said “The 23%
failure rate is very disappointing. We
hoped that traders would have been
more vigilant when selling cigarettes
to young people. Some traders did
ask for proof of age from our
volunteers as we would expect, but
the ones that illegally sold cigarettes
did not ask for ID or try to verify the
ages of the young customers. Seven
sellers have been issued with a caution
and the others have been given
formal warnings. Some of the illegal
sales are still being investigated.”
Retailers should be aware of a change
in the law regarding persistent sales of
cigarettes to youngsters. Under the
Criminal Justice & Immigration Act
2008, Trading Standards can now
apply to the Magistrates Court for
either a ‘Restricted Premises Order’ or
a ‘Restricted Sale Order’. This means
that if a shop or a person is convicted
of selling tobacco to anyone under
the age of 18, and the same shop or
person has made a further two or
more illegal sales in the previous two
years, they may be banned from
selling tobacco products for up to one
year. If a ‘Restricted Premises Order’ is
placed on the premise the order could
remain in place even if there is a
change of ownership.
Susan Dewar went on to say “We take
the sale of cigarettes to children very
seriously, and will continue to test
purchase throughout the year to
ensure that the number of illegal sales
are reduced. A shop assistant who
makes the sale as well as the owner of
the shop is liable under the legislation.”
Retailers who want further advice on
the best ways to prevent underage
sales should contact their local
Trading Standards Service, details can
be found on the back page.
SOUTH YORKSHIRE TRADING STANDARDS SERVICES NEWSLETTER • ISSUE 13 - SUMMER 2010
SOUTH YORKSHIRE TRADING STANDARDS SERVICES - IMPROVING STANDARDS THROUGH PARTNERSHIP