I ordered ground turmeric and ginger in bulk online to save money on my food bills. I’ve tried both spices and I’m convinced they’ve had bulking ingredients added.
Who do I complain to?
P.W., By email
Consumer rights lawyer Dean Dunham on This Morning
Consumer rights lawyer Dean Dunham replies: I always say consumers ‘should get what it says on the tin’ when buying goods. This is not just a matter of principal – it’s the law – and is especially important when it comes to food.
In this respect, several laws are in place to protect consumers, including the Food Safety Order, Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations, General Food Regulations and the Food Information Regulations. I cite all these to demonstrate how seriously your problem is taken, as ultimately the deliberate mislabelling of food is fraud and is therefore a criminal offence.
However, notwithstanding the clear legal position, food fraud (as this is commonly called) is becoming a significant issue for UK consumers and something we all need to be aware of.
The deliberate mislabelling of food is fraud and is therefore a criminal offence
The general rule is that where a food or drink product has two or more ingredients, including any additives, the label must list them all. Ingredients must be listed in order of weight, with the main ingredient first.
Bulking agents are an additive that increases food volume or weight, and if the ground turmeric and ginger you purchased does contain them, they should be listed on the label and on the description you read online.
Clearly they were not listed in your case, meaning the trader has committed a criminal offence and is in breach of contract in relation to the sale to you. In these circumstances there are two steps you can take.
Firstly, demand your money back on the basis that the goods are ‘not as described’ as they should be under the Consumer Rights Act. Secondly, make a complaint to Trading Standards, which is where the Food Standards Agency directs consumers to complain about misleading labelling.
I subscribed to receive medicine online for six months. However, the subscription has auto-renewed even though I no longer want to receive it. What can I do?
Let me start by saying that the automatic renewal of contracts for consumers should, in my firm view, be banned.
Rarely are automatic renewals good for the consumer and they often lead customers to pay for something they no longer want or need, just because they have forgotten to cancel or they haven’t realised the contract has auto-renewed.
Unfortunately, auto-renewals are, on the face of it, allowed under consumer laws, but there are circumstances where they cross the line.
The guiding principle is transparency, so there are two questions to ask yourself here. When you took out the original subscription did the trader explain, in clear, transparent terms that the subscription would auto-renew at the end of the six-month period? Secondly did the trader send you a notice or warning to inform you that the subscription was shortly going to automatically renew, with clear instructions on how to cancel the contract?
If the answer to either question is ‘no’, my view is the contract for the subscription will fall foul of the Consumer Rights Act, on the basis that the renewal clause is an ‘unfair term’ and therefore not binding. The effect of this is that you can cancel the contract with immediate effect and demand a refund of any money you’ve paid after the initial six-month term – although you will also have to return any medicine received after the term.
If you pay for the subscription via direct debit you should instruct your bank in writing to cancel future payments. Likewise, if you pay via debit card, under what is known as a continuous payment authority, notify the trader and your card provider that you wish to stop the payments immediately.
