Trading Standards

Trading Standards help to protect the public and honest businesses from rogue traders and illegal practices. We are concerned with the law and regulation that govern goods and services which are bought, hired or sold and we have experienced professionals with specialist knowledge in consumer issues.

Latest News September 2010

Your guide to buying your first car September - With the new registration number being issued on 01/09/10 Trading Standards and Consumer Direct have put together information and advice to help you make the right choices when buying a car. Make sure you know your rights and download our information leaflet.

Doorstep Seller loses Licence – Trading Standards Chalk up another success (PDF)
Suspect it – Report it – 08454 040506 - 'Don’t give rogue traders a chance in Coventry' (PDF)

Recent warnings

Prize Draws - September 2010 - We continue to receive reports from local residents of letters they have received notifying them of big wins in some Prize Draw or Lottery that they have not heard of let alone entered. Most ask for a fee or personal information such as bank account details. Our Advice is to ignore such mailings and report them to Consumer Direct on 08454 040506.
No Win No Fee: Accident & Personal Injury Claims Warning – September 2010. Be aware of any calls asking whether you have had an accident in the last three years because you may be due compensation. There are many legitimate businesses who offer this service but there are also fraudsters who may want upfront fees. All Claims Assessors must be authorised by the Government to carry out business and follow strict rules covering how they advertise, take on business, deal with and represent clients. Before you use a claims assessor, check with the Claims Management Compliance Unit: 0845 450 6858
Inheritance Scam – September 2010 – Watch out for an email claiming to be from a barrister saying that they believe you may have been left a sum of money in a will. A request is made for a fee by money transfer. This is a typical advance fee fraud, where if money is sent, no more will be heard.
Bogus clothing collections warning - Householders are being warned of the risk of mistakenly giving unwanted clothing to commercial companies rather than to registered charities. Many commercial companies purport to collect clothes for distribution amongst charitable organisations when they are in fact sold for profit. It is estimated that genuine British Charities lose out on £3 million a year because of this. Follow the link for an information leaflet (PDF) which gives advice on what to look out for.
Telephone Scam– Beware of anyone claiming to be a 'representative' from your telephone provider who tells you that you will be disconnected because of an unpaid bill and demands an immediate payment. Our advice is do not give out any personal details to the caller – terminate the call immediately and contact your supplier to see if there are any issues with payments – July 2010.
Warning Unsolicited phone calls offering computer maintenance, April 2010 (PDF) Reissued July 2010

If you wish to report a scam please call Consumer Direct on 08454 04 05 06.

Watch out! Beware of the scammers

In Coventry the number of rogue traders and illegal trading activities that are being brought to our attention is on the rise and Trading Standards Beware of the Scammers. has compiled a list of the most complained about 'SCAMS'

These include:

Door-to-door ‘rogue builders’ and home improvement traders
High pressure sales to vulnerable consumers
Bogus charity and clothing collections
Lottery mailings
Prize draws, sweepstakes
Home-working and other ‘get rich quick’ schemes
Bogus psychic predictions
Counterfeit Goods
Clocked Cars

About half the adult population is likely to have been targeted by a scam losing an estimated £3.5 billion per year to a variety of scams which exploit low-cost, mass-marketing techniques to target recipients. This equates to about £70 for each adult living in the UK.

Many of these scams originate from overseas, making detection and prosecution more difficult.

Your guide to beating the scammers
How to recognise a scam.
Guide for carers and care professionals (PDF)
Visit the Think Jessica website to read one victim's true story.

Help to stop scammers by telling your friends and family and by making us aware of any scams that you have encountered by sending your Scam letters to our Freepost Address: 'Scamnesty' – Trading Standards, Freepost (CV681) Coventry CV1 1BR or submitting an online scam report to Consumer Direct. (opens in a new page). Alternatively telephone 08454 04 05 06.

Your actions may help protect others from being targeted by scammers.

Over 50 and worried about rogue traders?

Age concern logo. Age Concern's 'First Checkpoint' service protects people aged 50+ from rogue traders by supporting them in selecting reliable trades people. All of them have been reference-checked and interviewed by Age Concern Coventry staff.
Important: In the unlikely event you are not happy with a job; Age Concern has a full complaints procedure and will support you through the process. Telephone: 024 7643 3982, Monday - Friday, 9.30am - 4.30pm. E-mail: firstcheckpoint@accov.org.uk Website: www.ageconcerncoventry.org.uk

Loan sharks

Have you been approached by a loan shark? Lending money without a licence is illegal.

Credit crunch

Visit the Citizens Advice Bureau website where you will find what you need to think about before you sign up to anything.
It tells you how to shop around for the best deal, how to compare the cost of credit deals, including APR, how to look out for additional costs such as arrangement fees and fees for late or missed payments and how to check you can afford the repayments.

What to do when a company has gone into administration? See Consumer Direct Advice

Latest Trading Standards Business Newsletter

Latest Trading Standards Business Newsletter - Read our latest newsletter for businesses in the Midlands. Other issues of Trading Standards News and Articles are also available along with a short questionnaire which you can fill in to let us know what you think of the newsletter.

Contact details

If you would like to know more about the work of Trading Standards or you have a complaint about faulty or misdescribed goods or services, you can contact our partners, Consumer Direct:

Telephone: 08454 04 05 06
Minicom: 08451 28 13 84
Alternatively, you can complete an enquiry form via E-mail to Consumer Direct (opens in a new window).
For advice for Coventry businesses on Trading Standards legislation, our Business Advice number is 0845 330 3313.
If you do not live within the City of Coventry you can find your local service at Trading Standards Central.

Downloadable documents

About PDFs and Accessibility

Clothing Collection Leaflet (183 kb)
OFT831 Your guide to beating the scammers (1562 kb)
Your Guide To Buying Your First Car (824 kb)