23
PRO INSTALLER FEBRUARY 2014
PRO NEWS
@proinstaller1
OFT WELCOMES
WEATHERSEAL’S
COMMITMENT TO IMPROVE
ITS BUSINESS PRACTICES
Following an OFT investigation, national double glazing company Weatherseal Home
Improvements Limited (Weatherseal) has agreed to make changes to its business
practices when selling energy efficiency and home improvement products.
The investigation stemmed
from a wider OFT consumer
protection review of the
energy efficiency sector,
following which the OFT is
working with local Trading
Standards Services and
other partners to drive
better practices by companies.
The OFT raised concerns with
Weatherseal about the conduct
of some of its self-employed
sales agents when selling to
people in their home.
‘The CMA will bring
together the existing
competition and
certain consumer
protection functions’
CONSUMERS UNDER
PRESSURE....
For instance, some consumers
complained that they felt pressured to make a purchase and
that the terms of credit used
to purchase products were not
always clearly explained. The
OFT also had concerns about
the training provided to sales
agents to ensure that they complied with consumer law and
about the handling of customer
complaints and enquiries.
Weatherseal cooperated fully
with the OFT’s investigation.
Whilst the company said that it
had already made changes to
how it conducted its business
and that it believed its practices
complied with the law, following consultation it has given
assurances about its future conduct, in particular that it will:
• improve the training given to
its agents concerning sales
techniques and regulatory
compliance
• ensure that customers are
clearly informed of the terms
of any credit agreement they
enter into
• provide customers with accurate information about their
cancellation rights
• make a follow-up call to each
customer who has placed an
order to confirm that they
have been left with copies of
documents, understand what
they are agreeing to, and that
they still wish to proceed
• ensure that complaints and
enquiries are dealt with in a
timely, reasonable and professional manner.
The OFT has also received
similar assurances from Window
Care Limited, a company that
provides training, compliance
and customer service functions
on behalf of Weatherseal.
Nisha Arora, Senior Director of
the OFT’s Services, Infrastructure and Public Markets Group,
said:
‘We welcome the changes
made by Weatherseal and
‘The OFT has been
working with fellow
enforces, regulators,
government, industry
and consumer
groups to promote
a consistent level
of good business
practice’
Window Care to address our
concerns. Energy efficiency
products such as double glazing
can offer major benefits to consumers through lower energy
bills and warmer homes, but
it is important that people are
able to make informed purchases with confidence. Businesses
need to make sure anyone acting on their behalf or in their
name, including self-employed
sales agents or contractors, are
properly trained and comply
with the law.
‘This action is part of a wider
drive by the OFT and its partners to raise standards across
the energy efficiency sector
so that instances of poor sales
practices do not undermine
consumer confidence and the
growth of this sector.’
The OFT’s investigation forms
part of a wider programme of
work into the domestic Energy
Efficiency sector, announced in
its 2012/13 Annual Plan. This
included a Consumer Protection
Review of the sector published
in January 2013, which found
instances of poor practice
towards consumers such as
the use of high pressure sales
‘Poor sales practices
must not undermine
consumer
confidence’
techniques, unclear information
about paperwork and cancellation rights, and poor quality
installations.
This led to the OFT: sending Advisory letters to over
50 of the leading installers of
double glazing, insulation and
solar panels, asking them to
ensure that they were providing
consistently good standards to
consumers; publishing compliance guidance for businesses in
the sector; and publishing guidance for consumers purchasing
energy efficiency products.
The OFT has been working
with fellow enforcers, regulators, government, industry and
consumer groups to promote a
consistent level of good business practice.
In April 2014, the Competition and Markets Authority (the
CMA) will become the UK’s
lead competition and consumer
body. The CMA will bring together the existing competition
and certain consumer protection
functions of the Office of Fair
Trading and the responsibilities
of the Competition Commission,
as amended by the Enterprise
and Regulatory Reform Act
2013.
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