Trading Standards - General Information
- What complaints will we investigate?
- Witness Statements
- Outcome of Investigations
- Advice/Verbal Warnings
- Written Warnings
- Formal Cautions
- Prosecutions
What complaints will we investigate?
Our policy is to investigate all criminal consumer law complaints for which we are the enforcing body. The form of the investigation will depend on the type and severity of the complaint and the officer's opinion and previous knowledge of similar complaints.
Officers are not in a position to obtain refunds for goods and services. If a refund, repair or replacement of an item is your prime objective, you should make this clear at the outset, so that you can be guided towards information that will advise you on how to pursue this course of action.
When a complaint is received, officers will ask you for a lot of information about the incident that occurred, which led you to make your complaint. You may be asked to provide a "Witness Statement"; this is a formal account, which is taken in accordance with the rules of evidence so that it can be presented to a Court of Law, if necessary.
The fact that you have been asked to make a Witness Statement does not mean that the investigation will result in a prosecution; as such, a statement is a useful tool in collecting and presenting your information in an organised fashion, whilst it is still reasonably fresh in your mind. However, should you be unwilling to provide us with a Witness Statement, or to appear in court, please notify the investigating officer, as this is likely to prohibit the taking of any formal action as a result of your complaint.
The outcome of investigations can range from verbally advising or warning traders about a matter, though to full court proceedings. In deciding the course of action to pursue, consideration is given to the nature and severity of the incident, the impact on public well-being, the previous conduct of the trader and whether it would be in the public interest to pursue such a matter; as well as having regard to the guidelines set down by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). Consideration is also given to the systems and procedures that the trader had in place in order to avoid the commission of offences and the effectiveness of the way in which the system was operated. In taking a prosecution, we have to satisfy a court 'beyond all reasonable doubt' of the offender's guilt to secure a conviction. Whatever the outcome, all complaints are recorded.
These are used to address minor problems where traders have perhaps been unaware that they were breaking the law, or that their trading practices could be improved upon. It is a way of working with traders to avoid similar problems arising in the future.
These are used for lesser infringements which are not considered serious enough to warrant formal action, but equally, are such that the Service wishes to record the fact that the trader was officially warned about the matter. Such warnings are taken into consideration by officers should the trader re-offend.
Trading Standards are permitted by law to issue 'formal cautions'. These may be used when we have sufficient evidence to be confident of a successful prosecution and the defendant admits to having committed the offence. Although there is no court case, the defendant still gets a criminal record. The formal caution will remain on the offender's criminal record until it is "spent". During that time, it will be taken into consideration should the recipient re-offend. It may also be cited in court in the same way as a previous criminal conviction.
When a complaint has been investigated and a full report prepared, it is sometimes felt that the most appropriate course of action is to prosecute. Such a decision is not taken lightly as Trading Standards must show the defendant to be guilty 'beyond all reasonable doubt' in order to be successful at court. Reports are prepared using the Bracknell Forest Borough Council's Enforcement Policy, whilst having regard to The Code for Crown Prosecutors, produced by the Crown Prosecution Service
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