Episode 17 X-Ray

This is the show that fights for your rights.

If you've been ripped off... Or that deal turns out to be dodgy... We

will battle it out on your behalf. Excuse me! Don't manhandle me! You

never checked those vehicles when you sold them! We are here to fight

your corner. The customers who wanted

a reliable motor, but their garage gave

them the run-around. They took my money for that

warranty and didn't put that It's a common headache

on the high street. We find out why one size

really doesn't fit all. These are the worst jeans I've ever

had the misfortune to try on. And Omar's in beautiful Bethesda,

where the rain, and the river, Are you sure this isn't just a very

loud washing machine? First tonight, Rachel's been meeting

some very angry customers of a car garage which just can't

seem to stay in one place. Buying a second-hand car can be

a daunting experience. You need to choose a dealer

you trust, find the right car in the right condition,

and make sure it comes But even if you think you've done

all the right checks, you can still get caught out and end

up buying a dodgy car from a garage that just won't want to know

when things go wrong. Chrissie Weaver, from Port Talbot,

needed a car so that she and her dog Caspar could get around to see

the people they help. He's a little therapy dog and my

clients really love to see him. I support vulnerable

adults in their own home, so basically I'll actually go

and live with them, normally for either one

or two weeks at a time. Last July, she thought she'd found

the perfect car to get to work. This Peugeot, for sale

at the Birchgrove Motor Company It came with what she thought

was a six-month RAC warranty. When the car was delivered,

the tyres were bald and the wiper blade wasn't clearing the screen,

so they needed to be replaced, And there was this sort of noise

coming from the front of the car. The noise turned out

to be the brakes. And getting the garage to put right

the faults on her dream car started It started overheating in traffic

and then I ended up with the engine Over the next five months, her car

was in and out of the garage, until eventually Chrissie

demanded a refund. But Birchgrove Motors

had other ideas. I had a phone call when

I was at work to say, "I'm outside your house

with your car, what shall I'll post them

through the letterbox." I checked the car and absolutely

nothing had been done. It's left Chrissie and Caspar

struggling to get around. I have to catch the train,

I have to catch the bus, and it's just literally turned

into a nightmare. As for Chrissie's RAC warranty,

well, it turns out Birchgrove Motors never registered it,

so it's worthless. It's a familiar story to Michael

Ryman, who bought his Chrysler from the Birchgrove Motor Company

nearly a year ago. He paid ?6,000 plus ?200

for a warranty and drove away Within 35 miles, two management

lights came on on the dashboard, which rendered the car unable

to accelerate and drive normally. It took me three and a half

hours to get home at The car had a problem

with its turbo-charger. And just like Chrissie,

the warranty Michael They took my money for that

warranty and didn't put that And I have absolutely none

of the safeguards and reassurance WMS Group told us that Michael's

was one of ?7,000 worth of warranties which the garage

issued but never paid for. And Michael's had no joy getting

a refund on his faulty car either. We've spoken to more

than half a dozen angry Leigh Hemms, from Blackwood,

bought this BMW there in August. He hasn't had any problems

with it but the Ford Fiesta I put a ?700 deposit down

on the vehicle on the understanding that they were going to pay

the finance off on my But the Birchgrove Motor Company

didn't keep their word. I had a letter from Ford Credit

saying that the payment on the car had to be paid

within the next 14 days. If it wasn't, they were going

to come and collect the car and I'd be blacklisted for credit

for not paying it. Over the next three months,

the garage did make one monthly payment on the Ford Fiesta,

but wouldn't clear I was paying for this car

that they'd sold me. And I was paying for

the Ford Credit as well. So Leigh decided to take

matters into his own hands. I thought, "This can't

go on any longer." So I sort of went

a little bit Welsh Rambo I told him, "If you don't

give me my money back today, I'll be standing outside,

not on your property, warning customers about

the things you're doing." The next day Leigh finally

got a cheque to pay off Well, it seems three

men are involved - Ebrahim Ege, Asam Khan,

and Gavin Mathieu. They used to trade as Edge Cars,

with sites in Cardiff and Tonteg. But last year Edge Cars was stripped

of its authorisation It also racked up ?11,000

in unpaid court judgements. But far from giving up the motor

trade, they just changed their name. Overnight, Edge Cars in Tonteg

became the Birchgrove And now they've

disappeared from here. We wrote to the company

but they wouldn't comment We've tracked them down to Newport,

where they've opened up again under a new name, and we're

going to see if we can get In the last few weeks, they've

relaunched as Right Cars Online, claiming to be the right people

with the right price We're from BBC Wales'

X-Ray programme. This is so frustrating,

because we saw someone as we drove past, so we know there's

somebody in there. And we know that they were trading

from here a couple of days ago - Perhaps they were expecting us

to visit and decided not to be here. So it doesn't look like we're

going to get any kind However, the company did

send us a statement. They don't admit any

of the allegations made against them by customers and wouldn't comment

on individual cases. As for why they've moved three times

in ten months, well, they insist that's for "genuine

commercial reasons", and they've changed their name

each time, they say, There is some good news

for Chrissie Weaver, though. Her credit card company

is going to pay more than ?2,500 to get her car fixed,

which is fantastic. Now, if you've had a problem

with a company and you'd like us to look into it,

do get in touch. Still to come tonight,

we ask why it's so tricky Next, I've been investigating

the costly phone services you may not even realise you've used

until your bill arrives. Not so long ago, if you wanted

to ring your bank, or a plumber, you'd pick up the phone book

or call the operator. These days, most of us search

the internet instead. Because you could end up paying

a lot more than you bargained for. Lynfa Maeer lives in Upper Church

Village near Pontypridd. A few weeks ago, her husband Paul

had a letter from the DVLA When he checked the driving licence

he had, he'd made an error when he first started driving a long

time ago and put his wrong Paul couldn't correct the mistake

online so he searched for the DVLA's phone number,

rang them up, and sorted I couldn't believe it, I thought

somebody else had used our phone. When Lynfa questioned the big bill,

her phone company told her she'd ?30 for less than 15 minutes

really takes the biscuit! Well, it turns out that the 09

number Paul and Lynfa rang doesn't But the website they found it

on does look very authentic. It clearly says "DVLA Helpline",

and even has other information about road tax payments

and drivers licences. But if I read the very small grey

writing, I can see it says it's not I found lots more premium rate

numbers, starting with 084, 087 and 09, offering similar

services, but they can cost They're known as call forwarding

services, or Information, And often people don't even realise

they've used one until they're Kimberley Lewis, from

Merthyr Tydfil, wanted to call Sky She found this website offering

a "direct" line to Sky customer services but she ended up paying

more than ?28 for the call. As for Lynfa and Paul,

it's been an expensive lesson. This is why I got in touch with you,

because I didn't want other people Well, ICSS Directory,

the company which charged Lynfa almost ?30 for her two calls,

insist that their website clearly states their call costs and the fact

that they are not affiliated They also say they believe

that they comply with the rules laid Now, that regulator -

the Phone-paid Services Authority, or PSA - have told us

they are "looking into" a number of businesses charging premium rates

to connect customers Well, David Hickson from the Fair

Telecoms Campaign is with me now. David, what do you make of these

call-connection services? The service they're offering isn't

really a service at all. If presented with a clear choice

between the proper number for the organisation and a premium

number, there's no reason at all why somebody would choose this,

but because the rules aren't perhaps as tight as they should be, they can

claim that they are providing a legitimate service

within the terms of the rules. The Phone-paid Services Authority

regulates all numbers that begin 087, 09,

as well as Directory The 084 range, at the bottom

of the range of premium rates, doesn't at the moment fall

within the scope of regulation by the Phone-paid Services Authority

for this type of service. These Information, Connection

and Signposting Services, we believe whatever number it

operates on, that David, what's your advice for anyone

who may be searching Avoid things that offer

telephone numbers in adverts. They're almost certainly,

if they're putting up an advert, wanting to try and take some

money off you. Also, beware of ones where the phone

number appears very clearly amongst the search results,

so you can just press it and dial. Take your time, get the right way

of contacting the organisation and try and avoid people taking

money off you for Good advice, David,

thank you very much. And we'll put all that info

on our website for you. And from sky-high phone bills

to cheaper energy bills - at least that's the hope

for one small community in Bethesda! We'd all love to pay a bit less

for electricity but there's not much we can do about

it. One community here in North Wales is

taking things into their own hands. There's a revolution happening

in the small town of Bethesda. It's the first place in the UK

to trial a new scheme to produce here loads of money

green - and could save people The River Ogwen churns up so much

energy, especially when it rains, it makes perfect sense to harness

it. Well, Bethesda's almost

like a perfect storm in terms of the community,

the support structures and we've got very steep

mountains and lots of rain. So it seemed like the

perfect opportunity. A lot of the community energy

companies got together and said "We all want this to work. Where's

the best place to try it out?" Right, I'm ready to see this

impressive hydro power station, which Keith tells me

is in that shed. Are you sure this isn't just a very

large washing machine?! And this wheel and this water powers

goes round and round by water. a quarter to a third

of the village's power needs? Basically on the domestic

side, the houses, yes. What you've got is, high

up above us, about 200 metres up the mountain,

the water goes into a pipe. The water comes down

here under huge pressure. It goes through the pipe,

there's a wheel running in there Then it drops down there and,

it turns what is basically a dynamo, it makes electricity,

goes out on a cable and that's it. Yeah, but as was once explained to

me, doing something simply

is very complex. When the hydro is running

at capacity, it makes enough cheap electricity to power more

than 100 nearby houses. And that brings massive savings

to an area The big six energy firms charge

around 14 pence per kilowatts hour but when the hydro's running at full

speed, people here only

pay around seven pence! That's why the appropriately-named

Watts family And Donna and her husband

Chris were impressed by the bills they received

for December and January. For those two months,

I saved nearly ?60. So that's by switching my supplier

and obviously changing the time that So trying to make

a conscious effort. And when do you know

the electricity you're using If it's raining obviously we know

the hydro's going full speed - And over time you hope it will be

less guesswork and more certainty? At the moment, the information's

coming through two days later. What are you going

to spend the ?400 on? But I wonder what other

people in Bethesda make Yeah, anything environmental,

environmental stuff, When it rains, they turn

the rain into electricity. Can't believe it's coming

from Bethesda though. So they've got 109 households now.

Would you like to be part of it? Yeah I think I probably would.

I will get around to it eventually. And local energy project Ynni Ogwen

believes many more houses could be powered directly by rivers,

wind or sun. Are our kids going to be

making their own electricity We have intentions to roll

this out across Wales. It's actually about using that

electricity within communities. So I'm very positive and I'm

hoping we can expand this, not just in Wales, but in other

parts of Britain and beyond. So I've spent the day in Bethesda,

I've met Donna's family and it seems like these people might have

achieved the impossible. Saving money and saving

the environment If you're interested in finding

out more about this - maybe it's something you think

could work where you live - we'll put all the details on our

website. If you're planning a road

trip to France, be aware

of new rules to cut pollution. From 31st March, anyone driving

in Paris, Lyon or Grenoble will need to display a vehicle emissions

sticker on their windscreen. from the French Environment

Ministry for ?3.20. Fitness trackers which connect

to the internet But cyber-security experts

are warning they could be vulnerable to hackers

who want your personal details. Their advice is only to download

software from websites you trust. And parking meters in Cardiff

will be linked up to a new phone app Drivers can use MiPermit

to pay for parking - and a text alert will let you know

when your time is up. You can even extend your session

without returning to your car. Next, Rachel's been hitting

the shops, sizing up From six to 26, stores stock

virtually every size, so finding fashion that fits should

be easy - shouldn't it? It varies from shop

to shop, different sizes. They can be different

in all the shops that you go in. It's particularly difficult online

shopping because we do a lot

of that these days, don't we? I think you should be able to go

into every shop and be able to pick out the size that you are and it

shouldn't really vary between shops. There have been calls

to standardise clothing sizes, but it hasn't happened -

and it's left us with a problem. With no recognised standard

for sizing, what fits in one shop

may well not fit in another, which can make clothes

shopping a nightmare. Here at the University

of South Wales, the designers of tomorrow are

learning how clothes are sold Essentially, I think most retailers

are doing their own thing per se, there's no sort of regulation of how

they're sizing from store to store. I would say consumers are really

confused by what's going on, particularly if you're looking

to shop quickly and conveniently And Claire thinks some high street

stores may be trying

to massage shoppers' egos. Some of the brands will put

a smaller size onto a label even two sizes larger,

with another brand might be so definitely I think there's some

"vanity sizing" going on. I think it's time to size

up the problem with a shopping trip of our own.

Now that's my kind of research! We've recruited two X-ray viewers

to be our "store detectives". First up, mum of three and fashion

blogger Rachel Turone Shopping with children

in tow is always stressful but when you find you've taken your

size into the changing room and then it doesn't fit

and then you are having to switch sizes, it can be just

really stressful. Next up, Rachel's sister and mum

of two, Rhiannon Bowler She once got into a tight

spot out shopping. I picked up a 12, sleeves

were tighter than they normally were, it was tight around the bust,

and I managed to get it on So what we would like you to do

is, each buy a pair of these

in your size from the six most popular clothes

stores on the high street. We've gone for one of

the most popular styles, so that is the "mid-rise skinny",

then if you can get all your shopping bags together,

come back here, try them on and we will judge

how well they fit. Well, we've shopped.

I'm definitely ready to drop anyway. Shall we get back to the fashion

school and see how they look on? The labels all say the same -

ten for Rachel, 12 for Rhiannon, I do think they're generous,

stretchy, so you know within a day A comfy fit than

a skinny skinny fit. they're already roomy.

are a very generous cut, Mine are OK around the waist

but I find this material here, so I think within an hour

they're gonna be huge. These won't even go

close to doing up. I can't even get them on.

ever had the misfortune to try on. I feel like I can't comment

on the waist They're not saggy and they fit

like jeans are supposed to fit. I take back everything

I've said about Topshop, That's what the sisters

think of the fit, Claire measures the circumference

of the waistband on each pair. We've actually found quite a big

discrepancy between the smallest and the largest size ten and also

the size 12s, of six centimetres. You might expect that

if you were jumping up a size Even when we are looking at the

full circumference of the waistband, that's quite

a significant difference. Of course, some fabrics

are stretchier than others but our experiment shows

that the number on the tag What advice, then, for

consumers like us? I would say definitely go into store

and don't be worried if perhaps you don't fit into your normal size

ten or your normal size 14, because it might not be

anything to do, you know, Order a couple of different sizes

and, again, try them on in the comfort

of your own home and actually experience and see

what the garments look like I have been known to put down jeans

and walk out if they're not the size I want them to be,

so, yeah, I shouldn't take

that to heart so much. It's a great thing to have a pair

of jeans that are a great fit regardless of the numbers,

so I think be open minded would be the best thing to do

when shopping for jeans. I'm glad it's not just me

who finds this frustrating! We passed on our findings

to the six shops we visited. Topshop and New Look

declined to comment. the size and fit of their clothes -

us they continually review but because the style and fabric

varies between garments, the advice is always to try

before you buy. but if you need our help

with anything, we're here for you. Next week, the residents of a

Swansea housing estate being charged

to park in their own spaces. And all of this because I've parked

where I'm supposed to park