TWO Island traders have been issued with formal cautions for falsely claiming they are members of trade or professional organisations when advertising their business.
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has also issued eight others with warning letters for the same offence.
The two formal cautions were issued to traders falsely claiming membership of CORGI (now called GAS SAFE) and the NICEIC which are trade organisations for gas installers and electrical contractors respectively.
Traders who received warning letters were falsely claiming membership of the Federation of Master Builders, the Guild of Master Craftsmen, the General Osteopathic Council, the Institute of Plumbing, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, the British Board of Agrément and the Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering.
A minority of local traders make false claims about their qualifications and competencies to gain an edge over their competitors.
Falsely claiming membership of a trade or a professional organisation is a false trade description and any trader found guilty of an offence could incur a substantial fine and or a term of imprisonment.
Bill Henderson MHK, chairman of the OFT, said: "It is unacceptable for businesses to mislead their customers this way. The Office will not tolerate this type of behaviour.
"We are working hard to catch out those who try to cheat consumers and other traders and will have no hesitation in prosecuting where necessary."
"If any members of the public have any concerns about claims made by traders they should make sure that they check them out before employing them."
The OFT have reminded residents that just because a trader advertises in the local papers, in the telephone directory, or on the side of a locally registered van it does not necessarily mean that any claims made by the trader concerned are true.
Consumers can check out claims made by traders before them employ them by phoning the organisations concerned or by visiting their websites.
A leaflet "Checking professional qualifications, logos, and claims of approval" can be found here.
