Carpet Foundation completes 1st stage of OFT's CCAS

20 Aug '05

3 min read

Codes are approved only once they demonstrate they are effective in promoting consumer interests beyond the minimum required by existing consumer protection law. Code sponsors and members of the OFT approved codes can then be licensed to display the OFT Approved code logo. They will also benefit from the OFT's promotion of approved codes and the CCAS.

Welcoming the Carpet Foundation's completion of Stage One, Penny Boys, Executive Director of the OFT, said:

"I warmly welcome the steps taken by the Carpet Foundation and its members in developing this code of practice. It will ensure greater consumer protection for their customers and raise standards of service. We look forward to working with them as they progress to the next stage."

NOTES

1. The Carpet Foundation is a trade association for the carpet industry.

2. The aim of the OFT's CCAS is to promote and safeguard consumers' interests by helping consumers identify better businesses and to encourage those businesses to raise their standards of customer service. The core criteria cover the organisation of the code sponsor, the preparation and content of the code, complaints handling, monitoring, compliance and publicity.

3. The CCAS consists of two co-dependent stages:

Stage One - The code sponsor makes a promise that its code meets the OFT's core criteria. The code sponsor must make sure its code contains measures designed to remove or ease consumer concerns and undesirable trading practices in its sector. At this stage, the code sponsor is not allowed to claim OFT approval for its code because there has not yet been an evaluation of how well the code is working in practice.

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