- Request
-
1. What is the name of the Local Authority your Trading Standards Service covers?
If you operate as a combined service, please enter the names of all the Local Authorities that fall within your service.
Section 1 - Resources
2. What was the total budget for your local authority Trading Standards Service for the 2023-24 financial year (1st April 2023- 31st March 2024)?
3. What was the total budget for your local authority Trading Standards Service for the 2022-23 financial year (1st April 2022- 31st March 2023)?
4. What was the total budget for your local authority Trading Standards Service for the 2021-22 financial year (1st April 2021- 31st March 2022)?
5. In the 2023-24 financial year (1st April 2023- 31st March 2024), what proportion of your Trading Standards Service’s funding came from the following sources?
If you do not have the exact figure, please provide an approximation
Source
% of funding (please sum to 100%)
Central government local authority funding
Other central government or regulator funding for specific functions
Devolved government funding
Regional funding
National Trading Standards or Trading Standards Scotland funding
Primary Authority Partnership funding
Other, please specify
6. How many full time equivalent staff, including contractors, work in your service? Please enter a numerical value next to each category.
Staff type
Permanent full time
Contractors
Part time
Professionally qualified staff undertaking Trading Standards work (this includes staff holding DCATS, CTSP, DTS or
equivalent qualification).
Other professionally qualified staff undertaking Trading Standards work e.g.
Environmental Health Officers
Other staff undertaking Trading Standards work e.g. apprentices
Administrative/support staff.
7. For which of the following do you have Trading Standards officers with specialist competencies in the area?
Specialist competency
Yes/No
Unfair commercial practices
Consumer Rights Act breaches
Prices and pricing practices
Motor trade
Travel and holiday industry
Renewable energy and home improvements
Doorstep crime, including rogue trading
Product safety
Intellectual Property
Metrology / weights and measures
Age-restricted sales
Food standards
Animal feed
Animal health and welfare
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
Consumer Advice
Other (please specify)
8. Do you share any of the following services with Trading Standards departments in other local authorities? If so, who do you share with?
Area
Shared? Y/N
Who with?
Fair trading
Product safety
Intellectual Property
Metrology / weights and measures
Age-restricted Sales
Food Standards
Animal feed
Animal health and welfare
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
Consumer advice
Other (please specify)
Section 2 - Demand and prioritisation
9. How many referrals and notifications did you receive to your services in the April 2023- March 2024 financial year in the following categories?
Category
Referrals
Notifications
Overall
Doorstep crime - this includes all rogue trading that takes place at the consumer's home
Scams - this includes mail fraud, telephone scams, and any other outright criminal activity that takes place from a distance (but excludes online fraud)
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
Food Standards
Motor vehicle sales
Motor vehicle repairs
Travel and holiday industry
Renewable energy and home improvements
Illegal tobacco & alcohol
Offensive weapons sales
Vapes
Property – including lettings and estate agents
Fair trading - including pricing, terms and conditions and descriptions of goods
Animal health
Product safety
Other
10. How many of the referrals received in the financial year 2023-24 did you take forward / investigate?
If you do not formally collect this information, please provide an estimate
Category
Number of referrals investigated
Overall
Doorstep crime - this includes all rogue trading that takes place at the consumer's home
Scams - this includes mail fraud, telephone scams, and any other outright criminal activity that takes place from a distance (but excludes online fraud)
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
Food standards
Motor vehicle sales
Motor vehicle repairs
Travel and holiday industry
Renewable energy and home improvements
Illegal tobacco & alcohol
Offensive weapons sales
Vapes
Property – including lettings and estate agents
Fair trading - including pricing, terms and conditions and descriptions of goods
Animal health
Product safety
Other
11. Of those referrals that you did not take forward, how often have the following been reasons why?
Reason
Always
Often
Someti mes
Rarely
Never
We did not have the staff hours required
We did not have the relevant specialist skills
The referrals did not merit investigation
The referrals did not fall into our priority areas
Other, please specify
12. Approximately what proportion of your investigations pertain to the online activities of a business?
- 0-10%
- 10-20%
- 20-30%
- 30-40%
- 40-50%
- More than 50%
13. What are the top three priority issues for your service?
14.Can you set out any aspects of your remit that you have had to de-prioritise over the past five years?
Section 3 - Enforcement activities/outcomes
15. In the 2023-24 financial year (1st April 2023- 31st March 2024)...
- How many routine (i.e. not responding directly to a complaint) inspections on businesses did you carry out?
- How many seizures of unsafe/non-compliant products did you make?
- How many hours of advice did you provide for businesses on their obligations under consumer law (excluding Primary Authority advice)?
- How many hours of advice did you provide for businesses for which your service holds a Primary Authority relationship?
- How many voluntary undertakings did you secure from businesses?
- How many test purchases did you carry out?
- How many cautions did you issue?
16. How many enforcement orders and formal warning notices did you serve in the following categories in the 2023-24 financial year?
Category
Formal warning notices
Enforcement orders
Overall
Food standards
Motor vehicles (sales & repairs)
Home improvements
Travel and holiday industry
Illegal tobacco & alcohol
Property – including lettings and estate agents
Fair trading - including pricing, terms and conditions and descriptions of goods
Product safety
Other
17. How many criminal prosecutions and civil enforcement actions did you bring forward in the 2023-24 financial year?
Category
Criminal
Civil
Overall
Doorstep crime - this includes all rogue trading that takes place at the consumer's home
Scams - this includes mail fraud, telephone scams, and any other outright criminal activity that takes place from a distance (but excludes online fraud)
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
Food standards
Motor vehicles (sales & repairs)
Illegal tobacco & alcohol
Offensive weapons sales
Property – including lettings and estate agents
Fair trading - including pricing, terms and conditions and descriptions of goods
Animal Health
Product safety
18. Please could you provide a copy of your latest enforcement policy?
Please enter any other comments or additional information that you feel is relevant.
- Decision
-
1. What is the name of the Local Authority your Trading Standards Service covers?
Lincolnshire Trading Standards covers the Lincolnshire County Council local authority area.
Section 1 – Resources
2. What was the total budget for your local authority Trading Standards Service for the 2023-24 financial year (1st April 2023- 31st March 2024)?
£1,313,990
3. What was the total budget for your local authority Trading Standards Service for the 2022-23 financial year (1st April 2022- 31st March 2023)?
£1,357,260
4. What was the total budget for your local authority Trading Standards Service for the 2021-22 financial year (1st April 2021- 31st March 2022)?
£1,387,642
5. In the 2023-24 financial year (1st April 2023- 31st March 2024), what proportion of your Trading Standards Service’s funding came from the following sources?
If you do not have the exact figure, please provide an approximation
Source
% of funding (please sum to 100%)
Central government local authority funding
70%
Other central government or regulator funding for specific functions
Devolved government funding
Regional funding
National Trading Standards or Trading Standards Scotland funding
19.5%
Primary Authority Partnership funding
1.1%
Other, please specify
Metrology activities
Licensing Income
Tobacco Control
Business Lincs
New Burdens
10.4%
6. How many full time equivalent staff, including contractors, work in your service? Please enter a numerical value next to each category.
Staff type
Permanent full time
Contractors
Part time
Professionally qualified staff undertaking Trading Standards work (this includes staff holding DCATS, CTSP, DTS or
equivalent qualification).
17.6 FTE
0
Other professionally qualified staff undertaking Trading Standards work e.g.
Environmental Health Officers
3 FTE
0
Other staff undertaking Trading Standards work e.g. apprentices
5.8 FTE
0
Administrative/support staff.
0
0
7. For which of the following do you have Trading Standards officers with specialist competencies in the area?
Specialist competency
Yes/No
Unfair commercial practices
Yes
Consumer Rights Act breaches
Yes
Prices and pricing practices
Yes
Motor trade
Yes
Travel and holiday industry
Yes
Renewable energy and home improvements
Yes
Doorstep crime, including rogue trading
Yes
Product safety
Yes
Intellectual Property
Yes
Metrology / weights and measures
Yes
Age-restricted sales
Yes
Food standards
Yes
Animal feed
Yes
Animal health and welfare
Yes
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
Yes
Consumer Advice
Yes
Other (please specify)
8. Do you share any of the following services with Trading Standards departments in other local authorities? If so, who do you share with?
Area
Shared? Y/N
Who with?
Fair trading
No
Product safety
No
Intellectual Property
No
Metrology / weights and measures
No
Age-restricted Sales
No
Food Standards
No
Animal feed
No
Animal health and welfare
No
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
No
Consumer advice
No
Other (please specify)
Buy With Confidence – Assured Trader Scheme
North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire
Section 2 - Demand and prioritisation
9. How many referrals and notifications did you receive to your services in the April 2023- March 2024 financial year in the following categories?
Category
Referrals
Notifications
Overall
2109
3331
Doorstep crime - this includes all rogue trading that takes place at the consumer's home
62
19
Scams - this includes mail fraud, telephone scams, and any other outright criminal activity that takes place from a distance (but excludes online fraud)
149
18
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
No separate category – all captured within scams
No separate category – all captured within scams
Food Standards
26
18
Motor vehicle sales
272
777
Motor vehicle repairs
65
168
Travel and holiday industry
42
90
Renewable energy and home improvements
334
373
Illegal tobacco & alcohol
17
2
Offensive weapons sales
3
0
Vapes
30
5
Property – including lettings and estate agents
14
27
Fair trading - including pricing, terms and conditions and descriptions of goods
901
1681
Animal health
14
7
Product safety
103
43
Age restricted sales
Metrology
Other
Complaints received direct to the service from partners – not through Citizens Advice Consumer Service – these are not reflected in the numbers above – within various categories.
37
5
35
716
6
4
93
10. How many of the referrals received in the financial year 2023-24 did you take forward / investigate?
If you do not formally collect this information, please provide an estimate
interpreted as allocated for immediate action – this will not reflect the number of complaints put forward for inspections and other enforcement action – i.e. 11 complaints regarding one car trader may not be allocated but will be put forwards for an inspection programme – not reflected in the figures below. Also the below is only reflective of referrals allocated from Citizens Advice Consumer Service – it does not reflect the number of complaints allocated/investigated where the complaint or intelligence report was received direct from partner organisations. Investigations arising from intelligence and complaints received from partners or inspections and sapling programmes will be far higher.
Category
Number of referrals investigated*
Overall
110
Doorstep crime - this includes all rogue trading that takes place at the consumer's home
18
Scams - this includes mail fraud, telephone scams, and any other outright criminal activity that takes place from a distance (but excludes online fraud)
0
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
No separate category – all captured within scams
Food standards
19
Motor vehicle sales
18
Motor vehicle repairs
0
Travel and holiday industry
0
Renewable energy and home improvements
6
Illegal tobacco & alcohol
1
Offensive weapons sales
0
Vapes
7
Property – including lettings and estate agents
1
Fair trading - including pricing, terms and conditions and descriptions of goods
20
Animal health
2
Product safety
16
Other
Age restricted sales
Metrology
Other
1
1
11. Of those referrals that you did not take forward, how often have the following been reasons why?
Reason
Always
Often
Someti mes
Rarely
Never
We did not have the staff hours required
X
We did not have the relevant specialist skills
X
The referrals did not merit investigation
X
The referrals did not fall into our priority areas
X
Other, please specify
Being Investigated by other partners
Unable to identify the offender
Victim unwilling or unable to pursue a complaint
X
12. Approximately what proportion of your investigations pertain to the online activities of a business?
- 0-10%
- 10-20%
- 20-30%
- 30-40%
- 40-50%
- More than 50%
13. What are the top three priority issues for your service?
Tackle Detriment and Reduce Harm
Support the Local Economy
Promote Health and Wellbeing
14.Can you set out any aspects of your remit that you have had to de-prioritise over the past five years?
To prioritise these objectives the Service other trading standards functions are considered low priority and are undertaken only in exceptional circumstances. These include:
• Providing civil law advice to resolve contractual disputes unless the customer is considered vulnerable officers will assist them writing a letter before action. All Lincolnshire consumers can access free and impartial advice through the Citizens Advice Consumer Service professionally staffed call centres.
• Responding to individual complaints alleging a breach of criminal law unless there is evidence of serious food safety, product safety or animal welfare concerns, high value fraud or there is an immediate need to secure evidence.
• Programmed inspection medium and low risk at premises unless in response to a serious complaint, they are identified through analysis of intelligence as presenting an immediate risk or they are included in a market surveillance project.
• Food, animal feed or product safety sampling to confirm compliance with legislation or standards unless included in a market surveillance project.
• Inspection of weighing and measuring equipment in use for trade unless a risk is identified through intelligence or the premise is included in a market surveillance project.
• Business advice beyond that which can be provided in one hour unless under the chargeable services pay as you go or primary authority.
• Requests to give presentations to local groups and meetings unless those attending are vulnerable, and the presentation provided addresses their vulnerability.
Section 3 - Enforcement activities/outcomes
15. In the 2023-24 financial year (1st April 2023- 31st March 2024).
- How many routine (i.e. not responding directly to a complaint) inspections on businesses did you carry out?
730
- How many seizures of unsafe/non-compliant products did you make?
Products – 25,237 – includes unsafe, counterfeit, including tobacco and vapes
Seizures – from 57 enforcement visits
- How many hours of advice did you provide for businesses on their obligations under consumer law (excluding Primary Authority advice)?
Not recorded.
- How many hours of advice did you provide for businesses for which your service holds a Primary Authority relationship?
166.5
- How many voluntary undertakings did you secure from businesses?
0
- How many test purchases did you carry out?
Underage sales Test Purchases - 84
- How many cautions did you issue?
2 Home Office Cautions
16. How many enforcement orders and formal warning notices did you serve in the following categories in the 2023-24 financial year?
Category
Formal warning notices
Enforcement orders
Overall
412
0
Food standards
88
0
Motor vehicles (sales & repairs)
11
0
Home improvements
14
0
Travel and holiday industry
0
0
Illegal tobacco & alcohol
31
0
Property – including lettings and estate agents
0
0
Fair trading - including pricing, terms and conditions and descriptions of goods
87
0
Product safety
34
0
Other
Animal Health
Feed
Metrology
147
82
50
15
0
17. How many criminal prosecutions and civil enforcement actions did you bring forward in the 2023-24 financial year?
Category
Criminal
Civil
Overall
18
0
Doorstep crime - this includes all rogue trading that takes place at the consumer's home
3
0
Scams - this includes mail fraud, telephone scams, and any other outright criminal activity that takes place from a distance (but excludes online fraud)
0
0
E-crime - this includes email scams, phishing, fake websites or copycat websites
0
0
Food standards
0
0
Motor vehicles (sales & repairs)
0
0
Illegal tobacco & alcohol
9
32 closure orders issued – these are for a range of issues – including persistent sales of illicit tobacco, non compliant vapes, underage sales – so the remit falls across product safety, fair trading and illegal tobacco.
Offensive weapons sales
0
0
Property – including lettings and estate agents
0
0
Fair trading - including pricing, terms and conditions and descriptions of goods
2
0
Animal Health
1
0
Product safety
3
0
18. Please could you provide a copy of your latest enforcement policy?
Trading Standards prosecution and enforcement sanctions policy - https://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/council-business/trading-standards-prosecution-enforcement-sanctions-polic
- Reference number
- 10084083
- Date request received
- 15 July 2024
- Date of decision
- 12 August 2024