Suffolk Trading Standards has stopped a premises in Ipswich from selling alcohol this weekend after the discovery of multiple sales to minors.
Premier Store, on Reynolds Road, was investigated following reports of alcohol being sold to people under 18 years old, with a spot check confirming this to be the case.
The shop owner received a written warning from Suffolk Trading Standards, who provided guidance and advice on age-restricted products to support the business.
Officers caught Premier Store making underage sales again, leading to the issue of a closure notice, banning the shop from selling alcohol to anyone for 48 hours.
The closure notice will last from 9 am on Saturday 3 December until 9 am on Monday 5 December, with random checks made during this time to ensure that the sanction is adhered to.
Graham Crisp, Head of Suffolk Trading Standards, commented on the notice:
“Suffolk Trading Standards will always work with businesses to help them comply with legislation in the first instance; however, we cannot turn a blind eye to someone breaking the law repeatedly.
“Claiming that someone appears to be 18 is not a valid excuse, as all premises should ask for ID if they believe that someone is under the age of 25.
“Preventing Premier Store from selling alcohol over this weekend will hopefully act as a serious deterrent to other shops in Suffolk who may be tempted to make underage sales without realising the consequences.”
Councillor Andrew Reid, Cabinet Member for Public Health and Public Protection, added:
“The sale of alcohol is regulated with good reason, with laws in place to look after young people who are more likely to become seriously ill from drinking and risk permanent liver damage from excessive alcohol consumption.
“Underage drinking is also shown to increase anti-social behaviour, making this far from a victimless crime.
“I welcome the continued work of Trading Standards to protect Suffolk’s communities and the health of our future generation.”
Since the involvement of Suffolk Trading Standards, the owner of Premier Store has pledged to tighten up on alcohol sales and offered assurances that staff will receive further training to avoid any future breaches.
Anyone who suspects the sale of age-restricted products, such as alcohol and tobacco, to those who are under 18 years old can report this in confidence to Suffolk Trading Standards via the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133.
Suffolk Trading Standards is helping to compensate victims across the county who lost thousands of pounds to an online fraudulent sweepstake scheme discovered by the United States Government.
The Next-Gen sweepstake sent tens of millions of personalised documents to unsuspecting recipients across the world promising prizes of up to $2 million in exchange for a fee of between $9 to $140.
Many victims made several payments before realising they had been scammed, and it is estimated that consumers collectively lost more than $110 million since Next-Gen began its operation in 2013.
Upon discovering the fraudulent activity, the US Federal Trade Commission worked with international partners, including the UK’s National Trading Standards Scams Team, to enable them to obtain the evidence needed to take Next-Gen to court.
Almost $25 million will be returned to victims of the scam, with over $631,000 (£523,075) paid out via prepaid Mastercard debit cards to those in the UK.
These payments include $10,000 (£8,291) for Suffolk residents who were scammed, and Suffolk Trading Standards has recently hand-delivered refunds ranging from £30 to £1,000.
Scams can be reported to Suffolk Trading Standards via the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133.
We continue to receive reports about scams where victims are targeted on WhatsApp or by text message by criminals pretending to be someone they know – typically their children.
Criminals will usually begin the conversation with “Hello Mum” or “Hello Dad” and will say that they are texting from a new mobile number as their phone was lost or damaged. They will then ask for money to purchase a new one, or claim that they need money urgently to pay a bill.
The criminal will provide bank details for the payment to be made to, with some coming back with further demands for money.
If you receive a suspicious message (even if you think you know who it is from), calling or requesting a voice note is the fastest and simplest way to check someone is who they say they are.
STOP: Take time before you respond. Make sure your WhatsApp two-step verification is switched on to protect your account, that you are happy with your privacy settings.
THINK: Does this request make sense? Are they asking for money? Remember that scammers prey on people’s kindness, trust and willingness to help.
CALL: Verify that it really is your friend or family member by calling them directly, or asking them to share a voice note. Only when you are 100% sure the request is from someone you know and trust, should you consider it.
Forward scam text messages for free to 7726. Your provider can investigate the text and take action if found to be fraudulent.
You can report spam messages or block a sender within WhatsApp. Press and hold on the message bubble, select ‘Report’ and then follow the instructions.
Never share your account’s activation code (that’s the 6 digit code you receive via SMS).
The Office for Product Safety and Standards has issued an Urgent Safety Alert for baby self-feeding pillows and is urging the public to stop using them immediately and dispose of them safely.
Businesses selling these products must immediately remove them from the market as they cannot comply with the safety requirements under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005.
Baby self-feeding pillow products are designed to be attached to a bottle so that the baby may be positioned on its back to self-feed without the assistance of a caregiver holding the bottle and controlling the feed.
This is inconsistent with NHS guidance in relation to safe bottle feeding.
When used as intended, even whilst under the supervision of a caregiver, it could lead to immediate, serious harm or death from choking or aspiration pneumonia.
Consumers and businesses are asked to take specific action to cease use or remove these products from the market as advised below.
OPSS has identified that this category of products will always be dangerous due to their design and intended use and can never be made safe.
Consumers should immediately stop using these products and dispose of them safely.
Businesses must immediately remove these products from the market as they cannot comply with the safety requirements under the General Product Safety Regulations, 2005.
Due to the success of the campaign in 2020 and 2021, the Friends Against Scams Team are again running a SCAMnesty (a scam mail amnesty) campaign aiming to encourage everyone in the UK to send in any unwanted scam and nuisance mail that they receive into the National Trading Standards (NTS) Scams Team completely free of charge.
This campaign will be running throughout December, but you can send post to their Freepost address anytime.
Send Mail (No Need For A Stamp) To:
NTSST, FREEPOST, MAIL MARSHALS
If you, or someone you know is in receipt of scam or nuisance mail, the NTS Scams Team's Investigators want to see it! They already use the mail that they receive from Scam Marshals to great effect through their disruption techniques but the team would like to see more and put a stop to these mailings landing on consumers' door steps.
Postal scams are letters sent with the goal of obtaining your money using deception or fraud.
There are many different types of scam mail:
- fake lotteries or prize draws
- fake psychics
- bogus health cures
- investment scams
The NTS Scams Team estimate that only 5% of these crimes are reported; this can be due to a number of reasons, including shame or embarrassment, or even that victims don't know who to report scams to. Victims of these crimes shouldn't feel ashamed at all - these criminals are experts at what they do and know exactly how to commit their fraud.
The team will send a reply letter to those who send their post using our Freepost address. You can also view the NTS Scams Team's privacy policy here.
Highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 has been confirmed at a commercial premises in Debach, Suffolk.
A 3km Protection Zone and 10km Surveillance Zone has been put in place around the premises (a map of Zones can be seen in the comments).
Housing measures to protect poultry and captive birds from Avian Influenza are now in force across England. It is a mandatory requirement to house your birds and practice strict biosecurity.
Nestlé UK is taking a precautionary step of recalling AERO Hot Chocolate products because a small number of packs may contain small pieces of food-grade silica beads, making them unsafe to eat.
AERO Hot Choc jars
Pack size: 288g
Batch code: All batch codes
Best before: All date codes
AERO ‘Hot Choc’ sachets
Pack size: 24g
Batch code: All batch codes
Best before: All date codes
AERO GO Instant ‘Hot Choc’
Pack size: 28g
Batch code: All batch codes
Best before: All date codes
If you have bought any of the above products do not eat them. Instead, dispose of the contents and send the lid of the jar, the empty sachet or the sleeve of the cups (cardboard of plastic 8-sleeve) with your name and address for a full refund to AERO Hot Chocolate Recall, PO BOX 205, Freepost 1374, York, YO91 1XB. Consumers with any concerns can call Nestlé UK free on 00800 63785385.
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