What we do

Our aim is to ensure a fair and safe trading environment for residents, businesses and visitors to Newham. As well as investigating complaints brought to us about traders in the borough, the service also advises traders on how to comply with the law on a range of topics from keeping animals to labelling of foods and selling fireworks.

We ensure a fair deal for consumers and businesses by:

• Fairly enforcing trading laws
• Dealing with complaints and unfair practices
• Offering advice to consumers and traders
• Providing advice leaflets
• Providing training, talks and promotions

Contact us

Telephone: 020 3373 9937
Email: Trading.Standards@newham.gov.uk

Contact Consumer Direct

Consumer Direct is the government-funded consumer advice service. It offers information and advice on problems with goods and services, energy and post.

Telephone: 08454 040506 or 01622 626520 - Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm
Website: www.direct.gov.uk/consumer

Our Responsibilies cover

Safety

This area of work is concerned with protecting the general public, traders and their employees from potentially hazardous goods. This includes visits of inspection, the taking and testing of samples. This covers safety of consumer goods including electrical items, toys, and bicycles amongst others. We also issue licences for explosives and fireworks storage, which includes exercises involving test purchases concerning underage sales. The underage sales enforcement is extended to cigarettes, knives, adhesives and lottery tickets.

Fair Trading

We aim to protect traders and consumers from errors or frauds concerned with quality, description or price of goods, services or facilities and to detect and rectify unfair advertising practices. Our objective is to maintain a climate of fair competition in trade and also protect consumers from fraud and dishonesty. Officers carry out inspection visits and investigations to check for compliance with the various statutes, regulations and orders.

Metrology (Weights and Measures)

Metrology is the science of weighing and measuring and this programme deals not only with the provision and maintenance of official standards of weights and measures as required by law but also the equipment used by trade and industry in its business of selling to the public. Priority has been given to the inspection of manufacturers and packers, petrol pumps, shop scales and weighbridges. Additionally products measured by this equipment are dealt with here and complaints have been investigated relating to short weight or measure deliveries of cheese, fruit, vegetables, meat, beer, and petrol and diesel fuel.

Consumer Credit

Credit and loans are important issues for the majority of the population at some time during their lives, hence the existence of this legislation. Credit licences are issued to traders after strict vetting by the Office of Fair Trading and are enforced locally by your Trading Standards Officers.

Trading Complaints and Information

On request, Trading Standards can help the public and trader resolve problems relating to consumer transactions, which they cannot solve themselves.