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Speak Out

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About Us

The Trading Standards Service is part of Tower Hamlets Environment and Culture Directorate.

We advise on and enforce a wide range of consumer protection legislation, carry out the Council's responsibilities relating to alcohol licensing and also provide a consumer advice service in partnership with Consumer Direct.

The service is split into 3 teams.

• Trading Standards deals with enforcement matters in Tower Hamlets
• Licensing deal with entertainments, alcohol and other licensing and registration matters
• Consumer Advice assists local residents in civil disputes and provides consumer education

Consultation

We would like to hear your opinions on the operation of our service and any ideas you may have for changes or improvements. Please use the confidential response form.

Satisfied with our Service?

If you have a complaint concerning the service provided by Trading Standards then please contact Colin Perrins, Head of Trading Standards on 020 7364 6872. In the unlikely event we are still unable to resolve matters you will be advised on what further steps to take.

Contacting Us

Consumer Advice

For Consumer Advice and complaints, please call the help line on 020 7364 6767, which will be answered by our partner, Consumer Direct London. The line is open from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m weekdays and 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturdays (not Sundays and Public Holidays)

Trading Standards

For other Trading Standards matters please contact our call centre on 020 7364 5008. Our fax number is 020 7364 6901 and e-mail tradingstandards@towerhamlets.gov.uk. Fax for licensing matters is 020 7364 5013

Our fax number is 020 7364 6901 e-mail tradingstandards@towerhamlets.gov.uk. Licensing fax is 020 7364 0863

From the 24^th of July 2006 all services were relocated at Anchorage House, 2 Clove Crescent E14 2BE. Nearest Stations are Blackwall and East India stations on the DLR and buses. Personal callers without an appointment must call first at Mulberry Place, 5 Clove Crescent, just opposite Anchorage House.

Our postal address is now:-

 Trading Standards, London  Borough of Tower Hamlets, Mulberry Place (AH), PO Box  55739, 5 Clove Crescent, London, E14 1BY

If you need to contact an individual officer about a matter they are already handling, please dial 020 7364 followed by the extension number given below

Market Surveillance

As well as dealing with specific complaints and carrying out routine inspections, officers all carry out specific projects, often in conjunction with other Boroughs.

Borough projects have included:

• Checks on unsafe ‘safety’ boots
• Checking take-away foods for authenticity
• Test purchases exercises for age-restricted goods
• Investigating false claims by local Colleges

If you have any specific concerns that traders are acting illegally or that there is a particular problem with goods or services then please contact us in confidence to discuss the matter.

Complaints and Enquiries

We are happy to accept complaints and enquiries by telephone, post fax or e-mail.

When contacting us by telephone please ensure that you have all the relevant information and documents to hand. Please include a contact telephone number and address in e-mails.

If you have a problem with the quality of goods and services, including non-delivery, then please contact Consumer Direct on 020 7364 6767. Other calls, including requests for advice by businesses, should be directed to the call centre number on 020 7364 5008.

Weights and Measures

Tower Hamlets is the local weights and measures authority for this area and has a duty to enforce the provisions of the Weights and Measures Act 1985 and related legislation.

This includes testing equipment such as petrol pumps, weighing machines and glassware; checking packages at retail, wholesale and packers; and testing optic measures in pubs and wine bars.

As part of this function we operate an income generating glassware testing and stamping facility which deals with over 12,000 items every year.

The Council is also part of the Inner London Metrology Liaison Group which is part of a LACOTS initiative to ensure uniform enforcement across London and officers have been involved in London-wide and national activities in this field.

Trade Descriptions

Tower Hamlets as a Local Weights and Measures Authority is an enforcement authority under the Trade Descriptions Act 1968.

The Act, though nearly forty odd years old, has proved to be effective in outlawing untrue claims made about goods and services sold to the public. It has proved to be a major force both for the protection of the consumer and in maintaining the balance of fair trading. The Act has been used to tackle serious commercial fraud such as product counterfeiting and the pernicious practice of 'clocking' vehicle odometers. The ambit of the Act extends to statements made in trade sales.

The Act has two main thrusts: it outlaws false descriptions made about goods and false statements about the provision of services.

Section 14 of the Act that deals with false statements about services and controls, among other things, holiday brochure claims and statements such as CORGI registered.

Consumer Credit

Tower Hamlets has a duty to enforce the provisions of the Consumer Credit Acts, which involve both criminal and civil law.

We act as home authority advisor (that is, provide advice to the industry) to locally based large newspaper groups, the Mirror Group and New International and also the Telegraph Group. This involves regular discussion and advice to the various publications.

The Council's Consumer Advice Section, operating through Consumer Direct London, will give local residents advice about the Act, for example in relation to rights against Credit Reference Agencies and the joint liability, in certain circumstances, of the finance company, for failures by the supplier of goods or services.

We are not currently able to provide debt advice, however we do have strong links with other organizations in Tower Hamlets and East London who may be able to assist.

Individual officers have also been involved on a voluntary basis in the setting up and running of Tower Hamlets Community Credit Union as an alternative to loan sharks and financial exclusion and attend the Council backed Money Advice Forum.

Animal Health and Welfare

In contrast to our colleagues in the Counties, Trading Standards Officers in London do not deal with the full range of Animal Health legislation, although we do enforce some requirements relating to feeding stuffs, particularly at retail level

The Council does however have an Animal Warden Service which can be reached via the call centre on 020 7364 5008

Olympics in East London

The buildup to the Olympics and the event itself will result in a significant increase in the workload for Trading Standards Authorities across East London, especially in Newham but also in other Tower Hamlets

In particular, a proportion of the funding for the Olympics is derived from the sale of branded goods and criminal controls under the Trade Marks Act are enforced by Trading Standards.

Additionally Trading Standards Officers will have additional work relating to their responsibilities under other aspects of the legislation listed above and related matters such as the Construction Product Regulations.

Want to know more?

If you would like to know more about the work of Trading Standards in general please contact us at Tower Hamlets or visit the ITSA website at http://www.tradingstandards.gov.uk/

London Borough of Tower Hamlets, Trading Standards, 60 Southern Grove, London E3 4PN
Telephone: (020) 7364 5008    Fax: (020) 7364 6935
Internet World Wide Web http://www.tradingstandards.gov.uk/towerhamlets/
Electronic Mail: tradingstandards@towerhamlets.gov.uk

Copyright © London Borough of Tower Hamlets 2000