HIGHLAND Council’s Trading Standards has welcomed recent changes in UK law which make rights for consumers simpler and more comprehensive than ever before. These amendments came into force on 31st March this year.

Nigel MacKenzie, Trading Standards manager explains, “The regulations will affect a range of transactions between consumers and businesses, including the sale and supply of goods, hire and hire purchase.

“Consumers can still expect goods to fit the description given, be of satisfactory quality and be fit for the purpose for which they were bought. If goods do not comply with these requirements then the consumer is legally entitled to remedies, which are:

• A full refund, if this is within a reasonable time of the sale (‘reasonable time’ is not defined in law but is often quite short).

After this ‘reasonable time’ had passed the consumer was previously only entitled to:

• A reasonable amount of compensation (or damages) for up to five years from discovery of the problem (in Scotland only)”. Under the new regulations, consumers have their rights enhanced and now have the right to choose repair, replacement, partial or full refund, or compensation if a fault appears within five years and it is reasonable for the goods to last that long.

Consumers should also be aware however that if they have a complaint:

• Goods must have been faulty at the time of purchase. If consumers complain within six months, the onus is on the retailer to prove the goods were not faulty at the time of purchase.
• If consumers complain after 6 months, the onus is on the consumer to prove goods were faulty. The changes mean that consumers now have the right to a repair or replacement where goods are faulty whereas before their rights were limited to a full refund or compensation. It also places a new burden on the retailer to ensure that goods that they sell are not faulty at the time of purchase. If they become faulty within six months of the date of purchase then the retailer has a responsibility to resolve the matter as soon as possible.

Consumers interested in finding out more about their rights can contact Highland Council Trading Standards at:

Trading Standards Unit, 38 Harbour Road, Inverness

Or phone the Highland Council, Trading Standards Consumer Advice Line on: 0845 600 4222 or email on:
consumer.advice@highland.gov.uk or visit their web site: http://www.tradingstandards.gov.uk/highland
* Note: Trading Standards is part of the Transport, Environmental & Community Services at Highland Council HQ in Glenurquhart Road, Inverness.