Trading Standards Wales Week is all about raising awareness of the wide variety of work done by Trading Standards officers in Wales
With the cost of living on everyone's mind at the moment, we have chosen five areas of our work that link to this theme.
These will be highlighted over the week, and you’ll be able to watch a series of podcasts and short videos introducing you to your local officers. Trading Standards Wales is a collaboration of all the Trading Standards authorities, and we work together to make sure that we’re consistent across local authority borders and that we target the issues that really matter to the public and businesses in Wales. By pooling resources on certain projects, we can do more with our shrinking resources and ensure we target the criminals and support genuine businesses.
Monday, 15th April - Recipe for trouble
Monday’s ‘Recipe for Trouble’ talks about all things food. From allergens, shrinkflation, misdescriptions and pricing, we report on recent activity within Wales which still shows alarming results in allergen labelling and awareness, and how both Trading Standards Wales and the Food Standards Authority continue to work in this important sector. We also report on Wales findings from a Competition and Markets Authority pricing in the grocery sector survey.
Owen Lewis (Food Standards Agency) and Lucas Williams (Neath Port Talbot Council) join Jemma on our 'Ask the Regulator' podcast, which you can listen to here.
For more information about this area of our work, click here.
Tuesday, 16th April - More fuel you
Whether it be energy, road fuel or heating fuel, these represent high expenditure for most consumers. We report on findings from 1,642 fuel pumps and 25 fuel tankers tested. Officers have been working to raise energy ratings of premises offered for rent, using a TSW Welsh toolkit for MEES and EPCs. And we point to advice for businesses in offering energy saving products and services, as well as guidance for consumers to understand the jargon used in this complex area.
Mai Chim and Lindsay Horth (Newport County Council) and Judith Parry (Chair of Trading Standards Wales) join Jemma in our Day 2 Podcast.
For more information about this area of our work, click here.
Wednesday, 17th April -Beware: Shark waters
The Stop Loan Sharks Wales team report record levels of activity in this area as loan sharks benefit from the cost-of-living crisis. A recent convicted loan shark, whose income was reported as being solely benefits, used high interest repayments to fund an extravagant lifestyle of holidays, vehicles and gambling. Advice is offered to consumers, and an online training session explaining the work of Stop Loan Sharks Wales takes place on the Wednesday. This event aims to give money guidance practitioners the confidence to identify signs that their service users may have been targeted by loan sharks and how best they can support them.
On today's Ask the Regulator podcast for Trading Standards Wales Week, Jemma chats with Ryan Evans from Stop Loan Sharks Wales.
For more information about this area of our work, click here.
Thursday, 18th April - Too good to be true?
On Thursday we talk about the many scams and rogues that Trading Standards encounter, leading us to warn that it may be ‘Too Good to be True’. We report on the excellent work done by Trading Standards in Wales in protecting those who have been subject to rogue traders, supporting over 1,300 scam victims, and preventing over £10m of detriment to consumers in Wales. We remind consumers that they are automatically entitled to cancellation rights when buying on the doorstep, and to consider using trusted trader schemes or asking for references when selecting traders to complete services in the home and to be wary of that bargain offer or competition that pops up in your email inbox or on your phone.
On our
Ask the Regulator podcast for Day 4, Jemma is joined by
Steve Bumford from
Shared Regulatory Services and
Chris Hill from
Neath Port Talbot Council.
For more information about this area of our work, click here.
Friday, 19th April -Cheap 'n' nasty
Friday’s finale of ‘Cheap ‘n’ Nasty’ is a reminder of the old adage ‘buy cheap, buy twice’. If you are looking for less expensive goods, Trading Standards works with legitimate high street businesses offering pre-loved, used and recycled goods – which often have to demonstrate the same level of safety as when you buy new.
These businesses offer an alternative to cheaply made and easily sourced goods bought on the high street or over the internet, which may originate from outside of the UK and not offer the same levels of quality or protection. Trading Standards regularly encounter cheap consumer goods which are unsafe, and we carry out checks at ports to ensure unsafe items do not enter UK markets.
In our final Ask the Regulator podcast of the week, Rhys Harries from Swansea Council and Emma Jones from Anglesey Council take to the microphone with Jemma.
For more information about this area of our work, click here.
We look forward to engaging with you during this important week whether that is by X, by podcast, by video clips or via the media. We hope that you find the week useful and don’t forget #wearetradingstandardswales and our officers are here to help and support you in your locality whenever you require assistance in relation to consumer matters.