Consumer Advice
The Trading Standards (Fair Trading) (Guernsey) Ordinance, 2023 came into force on 2nd October 2023. The Ordinance regulates the relationship between consumers and traders, it does not apply to private sales between consumers.
To provide you with guidance on your rights under the Ordinance we have created a tool that will take you through several questions to ascertain the issue and provide rights that likely apply to your specific situation. If your contract with the trader was made before 2nd October 2023 parts of the Ordinance won't apply. Please contact us directly and we can advise. If the form does not deal with your specific issue, please also contact us directly. You can phone us on 01481 220379 or email us at tradingstandards@gov.gg.
Overview of the legislation for consumers
1. The Ordinance sets out consumers rights when buying products, services and digital content making it simple and clear.
- Goods and digital content need to be of satisfactory quality, fit for particular purpose and as described.
- Goods need to match a sample or model seen or examined and digital content needs to match any trial version or demo.
- If installation is part of the contract, goods need to be installed correctly.
- Delivery of goods must be in the agreed time or within 30 days from purchase.
- Services need to be performed with reasonable care and skill.
- If time for performance of the service not agreed, it needs to be performed within reasonable time.
- If price for service not agreed before it is performed, and it's not yet paid for, only a reasonable price to be paid.
2. Introduction of prescribed remedies. Making it traders obligations clear in relation to products.
Depending on the specific conditions remedies available are:
Goods | Digital content | Services |
Short term right to reject. Repair or replacement. Final right to reject or price reduction. | Repair or replacement. Price reduction. Right to refund. | Repeated performance. Price reduction. Reasonable price to be paid. |
3. Consumers have a right to full, clear and comprehensive information about goods or services. In some cases they also have cancellation rights.
- Rules about what information consumers must receive about the product and trader before they enter a contract.
- In certain contracts, right to receive confirmation of what has been agreed in a format consumers can keep and refer back to.
- Cancellation rights for 14 days after buying certain products online, over the phone or away from normal business premises.
- Ban on additional charges to what the consumer agreed.
4. Obligation for businesses to trade fairly and honestly with consumers.
- Ban on unfair commercial practices.
- Ban on misleading actions and omissions.
- Ban on aggressive commercial practices.
- Ban on unfair terms and consumer notices.
- Requirements on terms and consumer notices to be in clear language and able to be read.
- Traders must report and keep up to date with unsafe products.
5. Requirement for products to be safe.
- Requirement for traders to collect and share information about unsafe products.
- Requirement for TSS to collect and share information about unsafe products.
- If you think a product is unsafe report it here gov.gg/tscontact.
- Trading Standards will publish details of unsafe products.
