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Scams - Call out charges. Know your rights

Royal Greenwich Trading Standards are reminding residents to make sure they know their rights to do with call out charges.

A call-out charge is a charge for coming out to you which is on top of the cost of any work or repairs.

So, for example, a plumber might charge you £100 for coming out to look at your faulty boiler and working out what the problem is. Then they might say it will cost you a further £300 if you want them to fix the problem.

It’s a legal requirement under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 and under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs) for the plumber to make it clear they are charging you for the visit and that this is separate from any work they may or may not do.

They should tell you this before they come out to you, and tell you how much the call-out charge will be. If they don’t tell you about a call out charge and then charge one, you may not have to pay this additional cost.

If you've been misled, you may be able to take action under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008.

To get information or advice about your rights, call the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 03454 04 05 06 (Monday – Friday 9am – 5pm) or report it to them at:

http://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/index/getadvice/consumer_service.htm

Who to contact

Parent Organisation
Royal Greenwich Trading Standards Rapid Response Team