(Updated 04/04/2023)
The law protects your consumer rights when you buy goods or services.
You can get help if you’re treated unfairly or when things go wrong. This includes problems with:
- credit and store cards
- faulty goods
- counterfeit goods
- poor service
- contracts
- builders
- rogue traders
You can call the Citizens Advice Helpline to get advice. They can also refer your complaint to your Local Trading Standards Officers who may then investigate on your behalf.
IOW Trading Standards:
Consumers have rights and often if a trader breaks those rights, for example, through providing faulty goods or substandard services the consumer is owed compensation. We do not obtain this compensation on your behalf, however by contacting our partner organization Citizens Advice Consumer Help Line you will be given advice and assistance on how to obtain redress for yourself.
After you have made a complaint or provided information to Citizens Advice we will generally only contact you if we need further information. We do not usually provide feedback, except where officers intend to take formal action on the basis of an individual complaint.
Many complaints about traders are civil matters, for example failing to provide redress when faulty goods are sold. When a breach of the law is civil it does not necessarily mean that the trader has also committed a criminal offence. However, you may well be able to take your own action. If you contact the Citizens Advice Consumer Help Line they will give you advice on what action you can take.
We inspect various types of businesses to ensure they’re trading fairly, based on risk ratings and intelligence gathered from a variety of sources. We are also ready to respond rapidly to emerging situations, such as rogue traders and doorstep crime. If we find a problem, there are various options open for us to take, such as offering advice and a timescale for a trader to come into compliance with the law, confiscating illegal goods, or launching criminal proceedings.
For more on IOW Trading Standards go to the Related Organisations box.
Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline:
Contact the Citizens Advice consumer helpline (formerly known as Consumer Direct) if you need more help with a consumer problem.
Citizens Advice consumer helpline: 0808 223 1133
Textphone: 18001 0808 223 1133
Lines are open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Lines are closed on bank holidays.
Other Helpful Links:
Age UK Consumer Policy Factsheet
