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Key contacts

Trading standards (business)
Essex County Council
New Dukes Way Office
2 Beaufort Road
Dukes Park Industrial Estate
Chelmsford, CM2 6PS

Telephone: 0845 603 7626

0845 calls to Essex County Council are charged at BT landline standard rate. Please check with your provider as other tariffs may vary.

Discretionary Services Charging Policy

This policy shall be used by Trading Standards staff to determine when it would be appropriate to charge for the giving of advice to businesses based within and outside the county of Essex.

Activities not subject to charge:
  • All new and existing businesses are entitled to initial general advice on the legislation applying to them to help those businesses understand and comply with the law as it relates to them either on their request or on our behest (mail-shot, verbal, visit). However, this does not include examination and assessment of the full range of products or services marketed by a business but does include giving the business the wherewithal to do this for themselves.
  • Updates to business advising them on relevant changes to the law or giving guidance on new legislation (mail-shot, verbal, visit).
  • Examination of processes, procedures, production (including informal and formal analysis) and records as a result of programmed inspections, investigations or projects instigated by ECC TS.

 

Example activities typically subject to charge:

  • Assessment of and report on product labelling for compliance with relevant legislation (food labels, credit adverts, safety labels, etc) at the request of the business.
  • Formal or informal analysis of goods and report at the request of the business.
  • Testing of goods at request of the business (specific gravity checks, quantity checks, product safety checks etc).
  • Assessing new or revised terms and conditions for compliance at the request of businesses.
  • Assessment of brochures or leaflets intended to promote or market a business.
  • Delivery of training and talks to businesses.
  • Consultancy services provided to other organisations at the request of that organisation.
  • Site visits and inspections at the request of or with agreement of the business.
  • Costs incurred by Trading Standards as a result of instigating a product safety recall if a business refuses to take action itself.
  • Policing of special events to eliminate illegal trading at the request of or with the agreement of the event organisers.