What specific unfair trading practices are banned when dealing with consumers?
31 unfair trading practices are banned outright when trading with consumers. They include: • Falsely claiming accreditation – for example, claiming to be registered under an accreditation scheme when you are not. • Advertising special offers just to bring in customers when you do not really expect to be able to supply the products (so-called bait advertising). • Pretending that an offer is only available for a very limited time to pressure customers into an immediate decision. • Promoting a product similar to another manufacturer’s in a deliberate attempt to make the customer think that the product was made by that manufacturer. • Advertising that directly encourages children to buy a product or persuade their parents to do so. • Pyramid schemes. • Bogus competitions. • Visiting a consumer at home and ignoring requests to leave (door-stepping). • Unreasonably pestering customers (eg repeated, unsolicited phone calls). • Supplying products without being asked for them and then requiring
