Some of us will know that Windy has been something of a thorn in the side (and other bits) of Visit England about their lack of interest in places fraudulently claiming to have VE Star ratings, or displaying them after they've lapsed. It all seemed to fall on deaf ears, but here's some news from VE.
So good news for those of us who use the scheme honestly, good news for the guests who may not be misled any more by false claims on websites, and good news for the whole industry whether or not owners choose to be part of the scheme.
Trading Standards support for VisitEngland quality drive
Last Updated: 10 Oct 2012
VisitEngland has secured the ongoing support of the UK’s lead Trading Standards officer for Holidays and Travel. Working alongside VisitEngland and Quality in Tourism, Bruce Treloar is pivotal to VisitEngland's refocused drive to eradicate improper display of its quality marque and stars outside properties and on websites, including third party websites.
Treloar now works closely with the office team at Quality in Tourism, who are responsible for following up with properties that have lapsed from the scheme and yet continue to display the VisitEngland scheme logo. He has re-drafted all the letters that are sent out to reinforce the seriousness of the breach of the CPRs (Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations) and is contacting Trading Standards direct when the business owner refuses to co-operate. By preparing the evidence and cases for the local Trading Standards team, and often talking to officers directly, the success rate has improved dramatically.
Recent examples include:
Tracking down the publisher of a third party website that was displaying a VisitEngland logo for a lapsed property and getting it removed.
Discussion with Cumbria Trading Standards, which led to confirmation that a lapsed business cannot continue to display VisitEngland signage alongside the date of the most recent assessment. Once participation has lapsed the logo must be removed, as this practice is deemed to mislead consumers.
Ongoing support for a case where a consumer was booked out to a different serviced apartment block of considerably inferior quality than the one promoted on the website.
Support for a participant who has complained that a VisitEngland competitor is using a photo of his adjoining property to promote their own. Local Trading Standards, after contact from Treloar, agreed this breached the CPRs and the photo has been removed from the website.
Another case was successfully resolved when the local Trading standards team confirmed that a lapsed participant could not continue to use an exterior image in their promotional material (website or print) that showed any VisitEngland signage, even though the signage had been removed.
Many cases of improper use of VisitEngland signage have been successfully resolved, without the need for a prosecution. In Scotland, Trading Standards recently secured an order at Inverness Sheriff Court against Ali Raza Mohamed, owner of the Highlander B+B in Ardconnel Street and Highlander Hostel in High Street, Inverness. He was found on more than one occasion to be falsely claiming membership of VisitScotland’s quality assurance scheme. Meanwhile, in Wales, hotel owner Emyr Davies was ordered to remove illegitimately displayed signage and AA ratings, with Trading Standards ultimately pursuing court action that led to Davies being fined close to £12,000.
Scheme participants who spot examples of improper signage are strongly encouraged to come forward and report such incidences to Quality in Tourism, either by telephoning 0845 300 6996 or emailing qualityintourism @uk.g4s.com.
Of course, before running up the bunting and breaking open a bottle in celebration, it's probably worth waiting to see how much is hot air and how much is action, but at least there's a statement of intent rather than a shrug.
