Surrey News
trading standards
VIDEO: Trading standards warning after doorstep foam insulation sellers target residents
If you’re looking at reducing your energy costs visit Action Surrey here for free advice and a list of vetted installers. To report an incident contact trading standards through the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 03454 04 05 06. If you feel under real threat or in danger, contact the police on 101 or in … Continue reading
Sniffer dogs to take centre stage at roadshows highlighting illegal tobacco trade
Specially trained sniffer dog Phoebe will showcase her skills at roadshows around Surrey to highlight the dangers of illegal tobacco. Phoebe (pictured) will join trading standards and public health teams in Redhill, Woking, Staines and Guildford next week as part of a crackdown on the counterfeit tobacco trade. The roadshows aim to raise awareness of … Continue reading
AUDIO: BBC Surrey interviews trading standards’ Steve Ruddy about rogue traders
Listen to BBC Surrey’s interview on Friday evening with Steve Ruddy, head of Buckinghamshire and Surrey Trading Standards, about the work being done to tackle rogue traders. It followed last week’s joint trading standards and police crackdown on doorstep scammers. Audio courtesy of BBC Surrey
MAP: Crackdown targets rogue traders in Surrey
Rogue traders and doorstep scammers in Surrey were targeted during a joint trading standards and police crackdown this week. Trading standards officers teamed up with the police to check vans and lorries, patrol rogue trader hotspots and pursue ongoing investigations into fraud and money laundering. A suspect in a doorstep crime incident in Ashford was … Continue reading
Surrey trading standards officers seize hundreds of illegal skin-lightening products
Trading standards officers in Surrey have seized hundreds of illegal skin-lightening products containing an ingredient linked to cancer. They have confiscated two consignments of potentially dangerous cosmetics in the space of a few weeks after they were brought into the country from Nigeria through Heathrow Airport. The products were seized because they contain the skin-bleaching … Continue reading
Surrey company director who laundered cash must pay back scam victims
A Surrey company director who laundered cash from a double scam has been ordered to pay back almost a quarter of a million pounds. Gary Booker, of Queens Avenue, Byfleet, was convicted of money laundering last July following an investigation by Buckinghamshire and Surrey Trading Standards working with Thames Valley Police. In 2013 a scam … Continue reading
Trading standards uncovers suffocation risk from packaging on 200 toy playsets
Surrey trading standards officers have uncovered a batch of 200 toy playsets destined to be sold as Christmas presents despite packaging which poses a suffocation risk. Officers ordered safety tests on a sample of the products – imported from China via Heathrow Airport – after becoming suspicious because the toys were incorrectly labelled. The tests … Continue reading
ROUND UP: Put clocks back and check your smoke alarm; Trading standards seize half a tonne of illegal snuff
Put the clocks back and check your smoke alarm Surrey residents are being urged to test their smoke alarm as they put their clocks back this weekend. The call from Surrey Fire and Rescue Service comes after the latest statistics from the Home Office show that 12% of households where fires took place in 2013/14 … Continue reading
ROUND UP: Surrey’s unsung heroes recognised; Surrey shop owner guilty of selling illegal tobacco; Consultation events on boundary review proposals
Surrey’s unsung heroes recognised Almost 30 of Surrey’s unsung heroes were recognised at a ceremony hosted by the county council’s chairman. Sally Marks handed volunteers a certificate and a medal at the event in Dorking to recognise the work they do in their communities. Among those receiving awards were Carole Anne Cole, from Camberley, who invites young … Continue reading
Rogue trader had £150,000 in off-shore accounts
Trading standards officers searching for funds a cowboy gardener conned out of elderly customers discovered he stashed away £150,000 in off-shore bank accounts. Benjamin Brown, 62, of Epsom, Surrey, who is serving a three-and-a-half-year sentence for fraud and money laundering, ignored a court order to disclose all his accounts and moved large sums around before … Continue reading
Accolade for joint Trading Standards team
The joint Trading Standards team from Surrey and Buckinghamshire have won two silver awards for efficiency. In the national Improvement and Efficiency Social Enterprise 2016 awards, the team picked up the two awards for the work they did in merging Surrey and Buckinghamshire’s Trading Standards operations a year ago, harnessing their collective expertise to give … Continue reading
IN PICTURES: Hoverboards destroyed after failing safety checks
Dozens of hoverboards which posed a fire risk have been destroyed to prevent them ever harming members of the public. The consignment of 90 hoverboards imported from Hong Kong via Heathrow was intercepted by Surrey trading standards officers and sent for testing against electrical safety standards. The boards were found to have defective battery packs … Continue reading
Trading standards officers impound hazardous hoverboards brought in through Heathrow
Surrey trading standards officers have uncovered a haul of unsafe hoverboards destined to be sold as Christmas presents or used at children’s parties. They intercepted a £7,000 consignment of 51 self-balancing boards imported from China and sent them for testing to see if they complied with electrical safety standards. They will now ensure the boards … Continue reading
Surrey family of car dealers sentenced
A father and two sons have been ordered to pay £3,700 after admitting mis-selling used cars. Charles Wenman Snr, Charles Wenman Jnr and Mark Wenman falsely advertised second-hand cars as being covered by a 12-month warranty from a warranty company. The trio, who run Cranleigh-based dealership Walton Motors, were sentenced by Redhill magistrates following an … Continue reading
Father and son roofing duo sentenced
A Surrey father and son have been ordered to pay more than £4,000 after admitting rogue trading offences. Frank Wenman Snr and Frank Wenman Jnr, of Dunsfold, near Godalming overcharged for poor quality roofing and driveway work at two homes last year. They were sentenced by Wycombe magistrates following a prosecution brought by Buckinghamshire and … Continue reading
