Publications from CCP Directorate

Public Policy: Using Market-Based Approaches

This report, completed by a team at LECG for the interdepartmental Competition Forum, examines how competition and market forces can be used to improve the way that public policy is implemented. It develops the evidence base surrounding the benefits and pitfalls of using competition and market-based approaches and draws out practical lessons that will help policy makers in future policy development.

Lessons & Guidance for Policy Makers (24 pages).
Click to order a printed version.

Full Research Report (212 pages)
Click to order a printed version.

Consumer Strategy

The Consumer Strategy, ‘A Fair Deal For All – Extending Competitive Markets: Empowered Consumer, Successful Business’, provides details of the Government’s commitments to meeting our target of reaching the level of the best. They include:

• Promoting open and competitive markets;
• Empowering consumers;
• Simplifying the law for the benefit of
  consumers and business;
• Making it easier to resolve problems; and
• Ensuring a fair and safe trading environment.

Consumer Strategy (28 pages).
Click to have a printed version posted to you.
Consumer Strategy Regulatory Impact Assessment (49 pages - PDF only).

More information...

Trading Schemes Guide

Trading schemes may be called direct selling, network marketing, pyramid selling, multi-level marketing, or other names.

DTI has issued a guidance booklet The Trading Scheme Guide which outlines these provisions.

Such schemes are not illegal in the UK but they must comply with the provisions in Part XI of the Fair Trading Act as amended by the Trading Scheme Act 1996 and the Trading Scheme Regulations 1997

Please click the button or the cover to read the guide on-line.

More information...

Product  Recall

The European Commission (with DTI support) has issued a good practice guide "Product Safety in Europe" on corrective actions including recall. The guide is aimed at improving the effectiveness of recalls of unsafe products from the community market.

Product Safety in Europe (49 pages).

Further information...

The Trading Standards Central web site contains a list of product safety notices/recalls.

Consumer Safety Report

Consumer Safety Report for the period 1 March 1998 to 31 March 2003 presented pursuant to section 42 of the Consumer Protection Act 1987.

Comparative Study on Consumer Policy Regimes.

A comparative study of consumer policy regimes identifying how the UK’s consumer policy regime compares with those of our OECD partner countries.

Main Report
Country Reports
Australia	Canada
Denmark	France
Germany	Italy
Japan	The Netherlands
United Kingdom	United States
European Union	Summary Table
Comparative study for DTI by Professor Geoffrey Woodroffe and Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos, Brunel University
Report, index & comparative tables	Country tables (big file 2.5Mbs)

Consumer Direct - An Introduction

The Department has developed a new national consumer helpline - Consumer Direct.

This booklet gives the background to the Consumer Direct project and provides further information.
Consumer Direct - An Introduction (16 pages).

Consumer Knowledge Performance Monitor 2003

The objectives of the research was to update the findings of previous research conducted in January 2001 and January 2002 about the public’s knowledge of consumer rights, ease of access to information about these rights and awareness of consumer organisations. The report provides comparisons against the 2001 and 2002 results.

2003 Report (18 pages).

The Impact of Regulation on Competition in Automotives

The DTI commissioned Frontier Economics to undertake a study of the impact that Government regulations have on competition in the automotive industry. The study was intended to contribute to the Government’s competition and regulation agenda, providing information on how regulations can affect competition in general terms, by analysing the effects in one industry.

Report (100 pages).

DTI Economics Paper No. 1
Bundling, Tying, and Portfolio Effects  by Professor Barry Nalebuff, Yale University. 

The DTI commissioned this research to look at the economic and policy implications of bundling, tying and portfolio effects. These issues have played a central role in a number of recent high profile cases in both Europe and the United States. Part one addresses the conceptual and theoretical issues; Part two consists of thirteen case studies.

Part 1 - Conceptual Issues.
Part 2 - Case Studies.

Be Garage Wise – Don’t get taken for a ride when you take your car in for a service

This leaflet provides information on what you should expect from a good garage, taking charge of your visit to a garage and some helpful tips on the most common servicing items.

(171Kb) Be Garage Wise leaflet. Click to have a shorter printed version posted to you.

Car Servicing and Repair: mystery shopping research

Following the Report of the Task Force on Car Servicing and Repair the DTI commissioned research to provide an up to date picture of the service consumers receive in the car servicing and repair market.  207 garages and 58 fast-fit business were mystery shopped between March and June 2002.  The work was carried out for the DTI by Intertek Testing Services Research and Testing Centre.  The results are contained in this report.

(363Kb) Car Servicing and Repair: Mystery Shopping research.

Click to have a printed version posted to you.

Car servicing and Repairs: Research into trade and consumer interest in a national “good garage” scheme.

Market research was commissioned by the DTI as part of the follow-up work to the Report of the Task Force on Car Servicing and Repair to provide information on interest in a national voluntary and self-financing “good garage” scheme of the type described in the Task Force. The research was carried out by NOP Automotive and this report contains the results. 

(351Kb) Car servicing and Repairs: Research into trade and consumer interest in a national “good garage” scheme.

Click to have a printed version posted to you.

For more information about cars and your rights visit the Consumer Gateway.

Impact of Product Labelling Schemes

The DTI commissioned research to look at the impact of labelling schemes. Available literature was reviewed and conclusions drawn about which characteristics of labels and labelling schemes were effective in terms of meeting their objectives, and which were not. The effective schemes were also assessed on the ways in which they were effective and the reasons for it. The results are contained in this report.

Report (303Kb)
Annex (questionnaire used) (33Kb)

Guide to the Consumer Protection Act 1987

A guide to the working of the consumer safety and product liability provisions of the Consumer Protection Act 1987.

This guide explains in general terms how the product liability and consumer safety provisions of the Consumer Protection Act 1987 work.

(207Kb)

National Performance Standards for Trading Standards

As part of the Government’s commitment to modernising the Trading Standards service Consumer Affairs Minister, Melanie Johnson launched a National Performance Framework. The framework developed in co-operation with LACOTS, TSI, NWML and the OFT aims to ensure that Trading Standards services throughout the UK are able to develop a modern service which works towards national and local priorities in a coherent way. Click Here for more details.

MS Word Document

Guidelines for Government Support for Product Labelling Schemes

The lead Department for co-ordinating product labelling policy is the Department of Trade and Industry which provides the secretariat for an Interdepartmental Group on Product Labelling. The Group has produced the attached policy guidelines on the issues to be taken into account when Government support for new product labelling proposals are being considered.

(251Kb)

Empowering Consumers in the Enterprise Economy

This booklet sets out the consumer measures proposed in the Enterprise Bill announced in the Queen’s Speech. The measures aim to improve the information available to consumers, promote consumer interests in competition, modernise consumer protection legislation and improve the performance of enforcement bodies.

(189Kb)

Informing Consumers About E-Commerce

The DTI commissioned independent research on consumer attitudes and perceptions of the Internet as a place to shop. These reports show the findings of the research.

Full Report (147Kb)
Summary of the Report:(108Kb) a printed version of the summary.

Consumer Knowledge Performance Monitor 2001

The DTI commissioned independent research to measure and assess consumers' knowledge of their rights.

Under Consumer & Competition Policy Directorate's Public Service Agreement, we are committed to achieving a fairer deal for consumers. This will be measured by the level of consumer knowledge and understanding of rights and sources of information.

The findings of this survey provide a baseline against which any changes over the next three years can be tracked.

Research report.

Mobile Phone Price Transparency Report

The DTI commissioned research into how easily consumers could get value for money when buying a mobile phone package, and whether the format of presented information helped or hindered the selection process. The report found that consumers generally received good advice that reflected their expected patterns of usage, either from sales staff or from friends and family members. Printed information about tariffs was, however, often obscure. An increasing range of packages was being made available to customers, including monthly contracts, pre-pay and "tariff optimisation", indicating greater flexibility to their needs.

Executive summary (252 Kb).
Full report MS Word format (737 Kb).
Users without the full version of Microsoft Word may download the free Microsoft Word 97/2000 Viewer by clicking here.

The Consumer Knowledge Survey

An independent consumer research survey to assess and measure consumer knowledge and skills.

The survey looks at what knowledge consumers have of their rights in a range of issues from returning faulty items to knowing who to complain to regarding goods and services.

Consumer Knowledge Survey

Switching Suppliers: an independent consumer research study to evaluate whether consumers are able to switch supplier with ease.

This is the first major study on switching to look across a number of markets including energy, telecomms (both mobile and fixed-line), car and home insurance, mortgages and banking and compare how the consumer fares in each

Executive Summary	Part 1 Introduction & Methodology.	Part 2 Key factors. Key findings. Consumer characteristics. The markets. Conclusions.