A4 Customer Service Legislation and Regulations
Legal Constraints are laws that have to be followed by businesses in their activities. These are implemented by the government with the objective to protect the public and the economy. Employers have a responsibility to ensure the welfare of their employees and visitors in the workplace. Legal constraints vary from country to country so businesses must be aware of the differences when operating internationally.
Implications for the business of not meeting all legal and regulatory requirements may include fines, regular inspections and negative publicity.
Customer Service Codes of Practice
Codes of practice are rules and expectations of behaviour in different settings. They usually derive from laws and shared ethical stances. Industry-specific codes of practice are adapted to suit the activities within that industry.
Customer service codes of practice include;
Timely response to queries.
Providing clear and accurate information.
Professional customer interactions.
Responding to problems.
Customer Protection Legislation
Consumers have the right to goods and services of expected quality. Legislation exists to protect consumers from fraudulent business practices, dishonest advertising and faulty and dangerous goods and services. The legislation sets out laws that businesses must adhere to when marketing and selling their goods and services. For example, The Consumer Rights Act 2015 requires that all products sold must be fit for purpose, as described and of satisfactory quality.
Find out more about consumer protection law in the UK here.
The General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (GPSR) requires that all products must be safe in their reasonable use. Examples of how a business may comply with this regulation are product testing and adapting to ensure that no injury can be caused in its use, providing appropriate labelling and giving clear instructions on how the product should be used
The Food Information Regulations 2014 requires food packaging to demonstrate an honest description of the contents of packaged food as to not mislead the customer. This includes nutritional information as well as food composition, e.g. you cannot call sausages ‘pork sausages’ unless they contain at least 42% pork.
The Trade Descriptions Act 1968 makes it an offense for businesses to make a sale based on misinformation. This act requires businesses to be more honest in their communications about a product. For example, the size, composition of ingredients, source of raw materials and testing that has been performed on the product.
The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations prevents businesses from harassing or misleading customers to make a sale. This includes making false or misleading messages, missing out important product details, using aggressive sales techniques or using branding features of a competitor.
Online and Distance Selling Legislation
Distance selling refers to any transactions made via the internet, TV, phone or messaging services. Distance selling legislation sets of rules that need to be followed when selling this way.
If a business does not follow these rules, they may be asked to provide the goods or services to the customer, be charged an unlimited fine or be asked to pay compensation to the customers affected. Responsible people may face unlimited prison time.
Read more about online and distance selling in the UK here.
Sale of Goods
The Sale of Goods Act 1979 requires all goods sold to be of satisfactory quality and fit for purpose.
Customers have the right to
A refund within a reasonable time frame depending on the fault.
Request a repair where a refund is not possible.
Request a reduced price.
Hire a third party to repair and ask the retailer to refund the payment.
Take the retailer to court within six years providing they can prove the fault within six months of purchase.
Health and Safety Legislation
Employers have a responsibility to ensure the welfare of their employees and visitors in the workplace. There are various pieces of legislation that outline employer requirements which vary from country to country. Find out more about health and safety legislation in the UK here.
Organisations can improve the health and safety of their customers by;
Ensuring good ventilation
Removing slip and fall hazards
Installing good lighting
Implement fire prevention strategies
Communicate a clear evacuation plan
Use good warning signs.
Train staff to manage and respond to health and safety situations.
Employ first aid staff
Have appropriate insurance
Data Protection Legislation
The Data Protection Act sets out how organisations can use personal data. Anybody who handles data must adhere to the principles of data protection by ensure data is;
used fairly, lawfully and transparently
used for specified, explicit purposes
used in a way that is adequate, relevant and limited to only what is necessary
accurate and, where necessary, kept up to date
kept for no longer than is necessary
handled in a way that ensures appropriate security, including protection against unlawful or unauthorised processing, access, loss, destruction or damage
Find out more about the Data Protection Act 2018 in the UK here.
Equal Opportunities
The Equalities Act 2010 protects customers from discrimination by organisations that provide goods and services. Organisations cannot exclude groups of customers from their products from their purchases including in their advertising. It is expected that firms make reasonable adjustments to support vulnerable groups of customers. This may include;
Wheelchair access.
Auxiliary aids.
Providing information in different languages.
Providing facilities for different needs, e.g. baby changing and prayer rooms.
Avoid promoting to specific groups in advertising.
Train staff to be respectful and adapt to different customer needs.
