Constituency casework: consumer protection

Members of Parliament receive a significant number of enquiries from constituents concerning consumer problems. For example, they may receive enquiries about the purchase of a faulty good, a dispute with a tradesman over the standard of service provided, or an unfair trading practice. Many of these enquiries are straightforward and can be answered using information that is readily available on the internet, in particular, from guidance published by Citizens Advice, the Office of Fair Trading or the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). Others are more complex and may require proper legal advice from a solicitor or other professional adviser.

This note provides a brief introduction to UK consumer protection law. Most importantly, it refers to sources of information that may be helpful to Members’ staff when dealing with straightforward questions.