:00:00. > :00:00.Now on BBC One it's time for Rip Off Britain Live.
:00:00. > :00:13.And welcome back to our special week of Rip Off Britain Live,
:00:14. > :00:16.where today we've been undercover in the second hand car trade.
:00:17. > :00:18.With, I'm afraid, quite shocking results.
:00:19. > :00:21.Wait till you hear how many of the places we checked may
:00:22. > :00:27.And we're not talking about some harmless regulation either,
:00:28. > :00:30.They're failing to pass on VITAL safety information you
:00:31. > :00:45.We asked you to tell us what lefty feeling ripped off and you have
:00:46. > :00:50.contacted us in your thousands. You told us about the customer service
:00:51. > :00:56.that is not up to scratch. They just want to take money from people. That
:00:57. > :01:03.is what it is all about. You asked us to track down the scammers. What
:01:04. > :01:09.kind of person could do this to an innocent human being? When you have
:01:10. > :01:15.lost out and no one else is to blame you have come to us to stop others
:01:16. > :01:21.going through the trap. You have to go through various levels of
:01:22. > :01:22.authority. We are here to find out why you are out of pocket and what
:01:23. > :01:36.you can do about it. Thanks so much for all
:01:37. > :01:38.the comments you sent us We'll be catching up
:01:39. > :01:42.with some of them later on. And we hope you'll be equally quick
:01:43. > :01:45.to get in touch today. You can do it right now by e-mailing
:01:46. > :01:47.us at ripoffbritain@bbc.co.uk. Or of course you can find us
:01:48. > :01:54.on Facebook at BBC Rip Off Britain. We really do love to hear from you,
:01:55. > :01:58.and remember all of our investigations are sparked off
:01:59. > :02:00.by the things that YOU tell us. So, it was your e-mails that sent us
:02:01. > :02:04.out to test if you'll be told the right thing if you're buying
:02:05. > :02:09.a used car. I think you will be surprised by
:02:10. > :02:19.what we have found. We'll look at some of the tactics
:02:20. > :02:23.used by retailers to spur you into spending your money that
:02:24. > :02:26.bit faster - or risk missing out. And we'll be returning to a subject
:02:27. > :02:29.we've looked at several Are some airlines STILL trying
:02:30. > :02:32.to dodge their responsibilities We've news of a campaign
:02:33. > :02:39.to keep them in line. Breakfast's Louise Minchin
:02:40. > :02:44.will reveal her spending secrets. And we're tackling more
:02:45. > :02:50.of your problems on the spot in our pop up advice clinic
:02:51. > :02:52.outside in the piazza. Simon Calder will be
:02:53. > :02:54.tackling your travel And he's standing by to
:02:55. > :02:59.answer your questions, along with consumer expert
:03:00. > :03:01.Martyn James. But before all that, get ready
:03:02. > :03:07.for some crucial advice if you - or anyone you know -
:03:08. > :03:10.is ever likely to be in the market Because after this next report,
:03:11. > :03:19.chances are you'll know a LOT more about the rules on this
:03:20. > :03:29.than the person who's trying If the second-hand car you are
:03:30. > :03:33.buying had a fault which needed fixing, you would probably want to
:03:34. > :03:42.know about and the dealers should tell you or even get it sorted. Very
:03:43. > :03:49.often they do not. As Anthony and Mandy discovered after they upgraded
:03:50. > :03:52.to a much needed bigger car. We had two new grandchildren and wanted to
:03:53. > :03:57.take them out during the day and things like that. We could not fit
:03:58. > :04:02.them in. We needed three main seeds for the baby seats and two other
:04:03. > :04:10.seats for the man and me. We wanted something to take them out that was
:04:11. > :04:17.safe to drive. Anthony saw a Vauxhall Zafira for sale. At the
:04:18. > :04:23.back of Mandy's mind was that some of these cars might have had issues.
:04:24. > :04:27.There was a recall on Vauxhall cars but I was not sure about the model
:04:28. > :04:35.war anything like that. Is this the car with the recall is on? He said,
:04:36. > :04:40.no. I said, that you or that make or anything. He said it is not that
:04:41. > :04:46.model. I was trusting him as a salesman to tell the truth is,
:04:47. > :04:50.knowing it was a family car that was being sold. The couple went ahead
:04:51. > :04:56.and bought the car. Still not reassured, Mandy thought it best to
:04:57. > :04:59.check the recall issue with the manufacturer. I gave them the
:05:00. > :05:05.registration details and told them I had been sold the car. They said it
:05:06. > :05:09.was on the list and was a recall. The couple could not believe they
:05:10. > :05:17.had not been told about this before they bought the car. From driving
:05:18. > :05:23.along normally to an inferno in a few minutes. Family cars bursting
:05:24. > :05:26.into flames out of the blue. By 2014, with the issue making
:05:27. > :05:32.headlines, Vauxhall admitted there was a problem with some electrical
:05:33. > :05:40.components overheating in a number of the Zafira models. The company
:05:41. > :05:45.recall the car for repairs in 2015 and then eight months later. With no
:05:46. > :05:50.risk potentially so serious, you would think the dealer might have
:05:51. > :05:56.wanted to let the couple no the car needed to be fixed or get it
:05:57. > :06:01.resolved. It was frightening to think we had a car that was a
:06:02. > :06:05.potential fire risk on our hands with children and grandchildren in
:06:06. > :06:10.it. From that day forward, we never felt safe in it at all. Although
:06:11. > :06:14.they send the card to a local Vauxhall dealer to have it fixed,
:06:15. > :06:19.they were convinced the dealer they bought it from should have told them
:06:20. > :06:24.it had an outstanding safety issue. Their requests to return it were
:06:25. > :06:30.refused. He has said, if you have not had a fault as a result of the
:06:31. > :06:37.recall being completed, there was no problem. That is not correct. The
:06:38. > :06:42.DVS say is clear that under safety regulations dealers are obliged to
:06:43. > :06:46.inform buyers if the car they are buying is safe and that includes
:06:47. > :06:49.telling them about recall is. They told us that is the very minimum
:06:50. > :06:54.that dealers should do and where possible dealers should get the
:06:55. > :06:58.vehicle fixed. They are not the only people to have bought a potentially
:06:59. > :07:02.affected Zafira about the dealer telling them the car had been
:07:03. > :07:07.recalled by the manufacturer. Others had had the same experience. At the
:07:08. > :07:12.time was not made aware of any outstanding recall is being made to
:07:13. > :07:15.the vehicle. When I found out I contacted the finance company and
:07:16. > :07:22.the garage to be told it was not their problem. Because of the
:07:23. > :07:27.issues, the value has decreased significantly and therefore it is
:07:28. > :07:32.not financially possible for me to do this. I felt misled about the
:07:33. > :07:37.issues when I bought the vehicle and I am too scared to drive it with my
:07:38. > :07:43.children on board. Although Vauxhall cannot know when or where they used
:07:44. > :07:46.Zafira is being sold, it says it is working with independent use car
:07:47. > :07:50.website so that when a vehicle is being identified as not having had a
:07:51. > :07:54.recall it can try to get the dealer to be detained for necessary work.
:07:55. > :07:59.Vauxhall told us that 80% of affected vehicles have now had a
:08:00. > :08:07.second recall carried out. It describes as a final fix to the
:08:08. > :08:10.problem and has apologised to customers for any distress caused.
:08:11. > :08:13.It also stressed that safety is the main priority. It recommends an
:08:14. > :08:20.owner who has not responded to a second recall to do so as soon as
:08:21. > :08:24.possible. But any manufacturer, not just Vauxhall, can only do so much
:08:25. > :08:30.to keep track of who owns the car once it has been sold on. One
:08:31. > :08:33.manufacturer told us second-hand vehicles can effectively vanish into
:08:34. > :08:37.a black hole. It is all the more crucial that dealers, who can easily
:08:38. > :08:43.tell which cars are subject to a recall, do pass on that information
:08:44. > :08:48.to buyers. In recent years, millions of vehicles have been recalled for
:08:49. > :08:52.serious, perhaps even life-threatening, reasons with
:08:53. > :09:00.affected manufacturers including Toyota, Honda and BMW. It just
:09:01. > :09:03.underlines how important it is for used-car dealers to follow the rules
:09:04. > :09:07.and disclose any outstanding safety recall. According to the chartered
:09:08. > :09:10.trading standards Institute, if they do not tell you such vital
:09:11. > :09:15.information which may influence a decision to buy the car, it could be
:09:16. > :09:21.a criminal offence. Well, only the courts can decide that one. Steve
:09:22. > :09:26.Gooding, director of the RAC foundation says this information is
:09:27. > :09:29.needed by buyers to be known. Anyone buying a car is going to a
:09:30. > :09:35.dealership because they expect a certain level of service. They
:09:36. > :09:41.expect the vehicle to be roadworthy. That is rather than buying something
:09:42. > :09:44.second-hand. They have a right to feel short-changed if they discover
:09:45. > :09:48.there is something wrong with a vehicle, particularly if the vehicle
:09:49. > :09:53.is subject to a recall and has not been actioned. To get a sense of how
:09:54. > :09:58.widespread the problem this may be, we conducted our own test. There
:09:59. > :10:03.were ads from dealers listing second-hand cars themselves. Then we
:10:04. > :10:07.went to the website of the ombudsman where we checked which vehicle was
:10:08. > :10:11.subject to a vehicle. That is something anyone in the market for a
:10:12. > :10:16.second-hand car can very easily do as well. Once we identified 50 cars
:10:17. > :10:21.that did still need a repair, we set about calling the dealers to see how
:10:22. > :10:27.many of them would tell us that. Remember, the law says it is
:10:28. > :10:40.something all of them should do. We had a truly staggering result. Of
:10:41. > :10:48.the 50 second handcart dealers, only one told us the information we
:10:49. > :10:54.needed to know. It has a safety recall. OK. What does that mean? It
:10:55. > :11:00.is a recall and do need to go to the main dealer to fix it. Good on him.
:11:01. > :11:04.We didn't stop. We went back to some of the dealers to see what they
:11:05. > :11:09.would tell us face to face. There is nothing wrong with it but the
:11:10. > :11:13.exhaust. We would not give you a warranty if there was something
:11:14. > :11:18.wrong with it. Anything else I need to know? To be honest, it is all
:11:19. > :11:25.standard. The same was true at the next place.
:11:26. > :11:31.Sounds simple enough but not what we should have been told. At the final
:11:32. > :11:47.dealer we visited, we were even more direct. None of these dealers either
:11:48. > :11:51.new or willing to tell our team because we were asking about still
:11:52. > :11:55.had potentially dangerous problems. Aside from the fact they may be
:11:56. > :11:58.breaking the law, it means customers are left without vital safety
:11:59. > :12:03.information which they need to know. Luckily there is another way to get
:12:04. > :12:08.it. My advice to anyone buying a used car or thinking about buying a
:12:09. > :12:12.used car is to have a good think about the model you are going to
:12:13. > :12:21.buy. Before setting out to the dealership, have a look on the DVSA
:12:22. > :12:25.website. On that website, you will find a fall register of all
:12:26. > :12:30.recourse. When you go to the dealership, why not just ask for
:12:31. > :12:34.evidence that the recall has been actioned? And invaluable resource.
:12:35. > :12:38.No getting away from the fact that the responsibility for relaying this
:12:39. > :12:43.kind of information lies squarely with the dealers. That is why the
:12:44. > :12:46.couple were angry they were not given this information before they
:12:47. > :12:54.bought the car. Definitely would not have bought it. No way. It is awful.
:12:55. > :13:03.It is terrible. So sad. It is money down the drain.
:13:04. > :13:10.We got in touch with the retail motor industry Federation which
:13:11. > :13:13.represents various vehicle dealers, including used-car garages.
:13:14. > :13:15.While stressing its members take manufacturers' safety
:13:16. > :13:16.recalls very seriously, it's stressed that not every
:13:17. > :13:19.recall necessarily means a vehicle is unsafe,
:13:20. > :13:24.and the level of remedial work required depends on the precise
:13:25. > :13:29.nature of any issue that a recall has identified.
:13:30. > :13:34.But it's confirmed it would expect its members to inform
:13:35. > :13:36.buyers of any safety matters they're aware of that remain unresolved
:13:37. > :13:39.at the time of purchase, whether it was subject to a
:13:40. > :13:43.And, of course, as we saw in the film that information
:13:44. > :13:50.So, if WE could find it, it's hard to understand why
:13:51. > :13:58.I know you will have a lot of thoughts about this.
:13:59. > :14:02.As you did with the topics we looked at on the programme yesterday.
:14:03. > :14:04.Not surprisingly, the biggest response was to our story
:14:05. > :14:06.Jules McCarthy called it an eye opener
:14:07. > :14:09.and Gary Philips tweeted to say he had no idea these
:14:10. > :14:20.And Kim Bloom and Sally Rintoul were among those who e-mailed to say
:14:21. > :14:23.they have elderly relatives who ended up with sky high charges
:14:24. > :14:26.for calls they either don't recall making, or that they believe were
:14:27. > :14:30.On the same topic, Lawrence Heasman reckons it would be
:14:31. > :14:32.simple for the regulator, Ofcom, to set a maximum charge
:14:33. > :14:46.Ofcom has launched a review into the cost of these calls.
:14:47. > :14:51.And, in the meantime, the company behind the 118 118 number
:14:52. > :14:54.does have a freephone alternative if you don't mind listening to an ad
:14:55. > :14:57.- a small price to pay to avoid the initial ?8.98 charge.
:14:58. > :15:00.And BT too has a lesser-known 118 service with a flat
:15:01. > :15:13.Although one person got in touch to say it is so little known that when
:15:14. > :15:16.they asked BT about it, the person they spoke to had not heard about it
:15:17. > :15:20.either. Very helpful! Meanwhile, as the fall-out
:15:21. > :15:22.from last week's ransomware attack rumbles on, some
:15:23. > :15:24.of you have sent in advice Peter Casaru, whose son runs
:15:25. > :15:28.a computer repair shop in Brecon, echoes the advice we gave to back
:15:29. > :15:31.up your files to an But he adds you mustn't leave that
:15:32. > :15:42.back-up drive plugged into your computer, or it
:15:43. > :15:44.too may get infected. Only when an infected machine has
:15:45. > :15:47.been wiped clean and the software reinstalled should you put
:15:48. > :15:49.everything you've backed-up back on. Well, do please keep
:15:50. > :15:51.your comments coming! It's what YOU tell us that
:15:52. > :15:54.determines everything we talk So, while I'm afraid we can't
:15:55. > :15:58.include all your e-mails, I promise you we really do read
:15:59. > :16:09.every single one. We have all got our fingers crossed
:16:10. > :16:12.that summer is not too far away and if you are planning a holiday this
:16:13. > :16:17.year, it is worth knowing that flights from some of the UK's
:16:18. > :16:18.busiest airports are twice as likely to be delayed as they were five
:16:19. > :16:23.years ago. But we know from your e-mails that -
:16:24. > :16:27.if that happens - the airlines DON'T always stick to the rules on how
:16:28. > :16:34.you should be treated. I am joined by two people who know
:16:35. > :16:42.their stuff when it comes to travel. With me are our travel expert,
:16:43. > :16:45.Simon Calder, and Pete Moorey from the consumer
:16:46. > :16:46.organisation, Which. Pete, Which has launched
:16:47. > :16:50.a campaign on flight delays, which presumably is because you're
:16:51. > :16:58.expecting so many people to once Why is it likely to happen again
:16:59. > :17:03.this year? The airports are becoming busier and with that comes more
:17:04. > :17:06.delays. The last thing any of us want as we are thinking about
:17:07. > :17:11.holidays is getting to the airport and finding we have got hours of
:17:12. > :17:16.delays. That is why we are running this campaign. We have looked at
:17:17. > :17:20.flight details over the last few years, 2 million flights came in and
:17:21. > :17:24.out of the UK last year, 10,000 of those flights would you compensate
:17:25. > :17:29.because they were delayed by more than three hours, that is the
:17:30. > :17:33.critical information people need to know. If your flight is delayed by
:17:34. > :17:38.more than three hours, you may be owed compensation. Too many people
:17:39. > :17:43.find it complicated to get the compensation and they do not know
:17:44. > :17:47.how to go about doing it. It is complicated, Simon. A lot of the
:17:48. > :17:51.compensation only applies if you are in Europe and using the Europe
:17:52. > :17:57.-based airline. America, you will be lucky! Let me run through the rules.
:17:58. > :18:01.It depends on whether you are three hours late arriving and not
:18:02. > :18:08.departing, they can sometimes make up time. It depends on the length of
:18:09. > :18:13.the flight, up to 1500 kilometres, 250 euros, medium length flight,
:18:14. > :18:20.400, a long flight, 600. That is reduced to half if you are between
:18:21. > :18:25.three and four hours... Already too many facts and figures! Crucially,
:18:26. > :18:30.coming back, it only applies if you are flying from somewhere outside
:18:31. > :18:38.the EU, Florida, to buy, only applies if you flying on an EU
:18:39. > :18:42.airline. The compensation airlines hate they have to give away the
:18:43. > :18:47.money so they will do everything they can to stop you -- the
:18:48. > :18:54.airlines. You have to fight it. I was on a flight last week with
:18:55. > :19:02.Ryanair. They sent an e-mail saying here is a letter for your insurance
:19:03. > :19:07.company. I said, no, I am going to claim from you! There is a lot of
:19:08. > :19:11.information, is the one place we can find all of this? We have heard
:19:12. > :19:15.people find it confusing and complicated and also if they claim
:19:16. > :19:20.in the wrong way, the airlines will try to pull the wool over your eyes
:19:21. > :19:25.and not give you your money. That is why Which? has taken the stress out
:19:26. > :19:29.of the situation. If you go to the Which? website, you can use our
:19:30. > :19:34.template letters. You need to put in the details of your flight, the
:19:35. > :19:40.delay, we create the letter. Send it to the line and you should get your
:19:41. > :19:44.money back. We hope that if you go away this year, you get the macro on
:19:45. > :19:51.time. Now you know what to do about it. Get in touch with us and we can
:19:52. > :19:55.see what we will do. Thank you, both.
:19:56. > :19:57.Next, it's not always just price that determines
:19:58. > :20:00.Sometimes retailers may employ gentle persuasion to suggest that
:20:01. > :20:03.if we don't do it straightaway, it may be too late, as one
:20:04. > :20:18.David loves his gadgets. Do I need an umbrella today? No rain is
:20:19. > :20:25.expected in London today. The 80-year-old from London knows his
:20:26. > :20:28.tablets from his tweets. I am fascinated by modern technology and
:20:29. > :20:35.I just like to do more and more, if I can. The technology I have got at
:20:36. > :20:42.the moment is just the tip of the iceberg and there is so much more to
:20:43. > :20:45.explore. It is unbelievable. Last Christmas, David spotted this
:20:46. > :20:49.newspaper offer for a virtual reality headset from Vodafone for
:20:50. > :20:56.the bargain price of ?9, available while stocks last. I heard about
:20:57. > :21:01.virtual reality before but I just wanted to see what it is all about
:21:02. > :21:06.and have a go. Not wanting to miss out on such a good offer, David
:21:07. > :21:13.headed to his local Vodafone store. It was the first day of the offer,
:21:14. > :21:18.it was only for two days. By the time I went in the afternoon, it was
:21:19. > :21:22.all gone. Despite getting to the store on the day the promotion
:21:23. > :21:27.began, David was told the goggles they had in stock had been sold. I
:21:28. > :21:34.asked the manager, it is not fair I came all the way and she said, I am
:21:35. > :21:41.sorry, we only had ten for this store for two days. So he left the
:21:42. > :21:45.shop empty-handed and disappointed. When we contacted Vodafone about
:21:46. > :21:50.David's experience, they told us, some stores will always sell out of
:21:51. > :21:54.the allocated promotional stock faster than others. Although in
:21:55. > :21:59.fact, overall for this promotion, there was no shortage and not all of
:22:00. > :22:05.the devices set aside were sold. In situations where all the in-store
:22:06. > :22:10.stock has gone, customers can order online with free delivery, they
:22:11. > :22:16.added. The expression whilst Ochs last is common practice across the
:22:17. > :22:21.industry -- while stocks last. It is the job of the chief executive of
:22:22. > :22:26.the Advertising Standards Authority to ensure customers are getting the
:22:27. > :22:30.full picture of what is really available and that companies are
:22:31. > :22:35.following the rules. One of the things they can do is they can make
:22:36. > :22:40.a reasonable estimate of the likely demand for an offer that they are
:22:41. > :22:47.named and make sure they have enough stock to satisfy the demand. That is
:22:48. > :22:50.only fair because people are sometimes making a trip into town to
:22:51. > :22:55.the shop to try to redeem the offer and they do not want to waste a
:22:56. > :22:59.journey. The ASA will act swiftly if they come across any retailers who
:23:00. > :23:05.are not complying with the regulations. A good example of a
:23:06. > :23:09.promoter getting it wrong when estimating demand was Morrisons in
:23:10. > :23:13.2014. They were doing a wine offer and on the first day of the
:23:14. > :23:18.promotion, some of the stock was running out. We did not think they
:23:19. > :23:22.had made a good enough estimate of the likely demand and provided
:23:23. > :23:25.enough stock to satisfy it and we published a formal ruling telling
:23:26. > :23:30.them to take more care in future. Ultimately, we can refer them to
:23:31. > :23:34.trading standards and trading standards can prosecute and find
:23:35. > :23:39.under consumer protection law. Cynics might say that while stocks
:23:40. > :23:44.last is a marketing gimmick to persuade us to buy more quickly or
:23:45. > :23:48.risk losing out and companies have other clever ways to convince as to
:23:49. > :23:53.hurry up and spend our cash and it is these tactics Guy says we need to
:23:54. > :23:57.watch for. You can look at whether they are running the same sort of
:23:58. > :24:03.offer the same time and if they are, it might be a clue this is a trick
:24:04. > :24:09.to hurry you into responding to the offer or a trick to make you feel
:24:10. > :24:14.the offer is better than it is. That is not fair, it is against the
:24:15. > :24:23.rules. In Macclesfield, housing trust peaks and planes organise
:24:24. > :24:27.drop-in sessions for digital skills. Today they will be highlighting some
:24:28. > :24:32.of the tactics used to encourage us to buy things. The classes are run
:24:33. > :24:36.by a specialist consultancy in web technologies. The person sitting
:24:37. > :24:42.next to you can help and guide you as you go. Chris is heading the
:24:43. > :24:47.class and he is keen to focus on the perils of online shopping. There is
:24:48. > :24:50.quite a lot of nudges that organisations and big retail
:24:51. > :24:54.companies use to encourage people to buy things like limited
:24:55. > :24:58.availability, limited duration, and we will effectively show them those
:24:59. > :25:04.and help them understand what they are trying to encourage them to do.
:25:05. > :25:09.First, Vera is looking at kettles from Amazon. When she sees a note
:25:10. > :25:14.saying only one left in stock, order soon, she is feeling the pressure to
:25:15. > :25:19.make the purchase fast or risk someone else beating her to it. The
:25:20. > :25:22.way the industry describes it is persuasion design. If you know
:25:23. > :25:27.someone wants to buy something, you can introduce things that might
:25:28. > :25:34.encourage them to buy quicker. Hotel booking sites often used similar
:25:35. > :25:38.techniques. Two other people are looking at this right now, they are
:25:39. > :25:41.trying to get you to make a snap decision, it has been booked for
:25:42. > :25:47.macro times in the last day. Trying to encourage you to make a choice,
:25:48. > :25:50.when you would normally go and have a cup of tea and think about it. You
:25:51. > :25:56.should be able to browse without being prompted to buy and come out
:25:57. > :26:03.without being compromised. Hotels .com told us the wording on the site
:26:04. > :26:06.is based on current data and it believes customers find the
:26:07. > :26:10.information useful for making informed decisions. We also protect
:26:11. > :26:16.Amazon the words order soon might push people into making a hasty
:26:17. > :26:24.purchase but the company chose not to comment -- we also put to Amazon.
:26:25. > :26:28.David will definitely be more cautious about rushing to take up
:26:29. > :26:35.any offer in future. I was so annoyed with my experience, if I saw
:26:36. > :26:39.an advert again, while stocks last, I will take it with a pinch of salt
:26:40. > :26:43.and I will not take up any more special offers.
:26:44. > :26:47.Well, he may have missed out on the offer, but Vodafone has now
:26:48. > :26:49.sent David the virtual reality headset he was after.
:26:50. > :26:58.Looking at today's papers, there's still lots more
:26:59. > :27:02.on that cyber attack, with the FT highlighting the dilemma
:27:03. > :27:08.for big businesses who need to choose between keeping
:27:09. > :27:10.their operations going round the clock or stopping everything
:27:11. > :27:15.And the Mail is highlighting how much money is raked in by speed
:27:16. > :27:19.cameras on roads with variable limits, typically on motorways,
:27:20. > :27:23.where the limit often changes to help with traffic flow.
:27:24. > :27:30.?20 million is the total, with 4 million of that earned
:27:31. > :27:33.by just one camera on a stretch of the M4 between junctions 19
:27:34. > :27:45.I know it well. None of that 20 million came from the!
:27:46. > :27:48.The same paper says we throw out a staggering ?80 million worth
:27:49. > :27:51.Households typically bin 1.4 million perfectly edible ones each day
:27:52. > :27:53.simply because they're a bit bruised.
:27:54. > :27:56.To tackle that, supermarkets will apparently be advising shoppers
:27:57. > :27:58.on the best ways to use them rather than chuck them away.
:27:59. > :28:04.Cook them! That is too much wasted fruit.
:28:05. > :28:06.And it just underlines that while the big stores come
:28:07. > :28:10.in for a lot of stick over food waste, most of it happens
:28:11. > :28:14.Every home should be issued with a goat!
:28:15. > :28:17.Every morning this week, our team of experts will be
:28:18. > :28:19.grappling with more of your problems in our pop-up advice clinic.
:28:20. > :28:22.And Gloria's out there now to see how they're getting on.
:28:23. > :28:28.I love it out here. I talked to a woman from Wales who has come just
:28:29. > :28:31.to experience this. We've a couple of thorny issues
:28:32. > :28:33.out here this morning - both of them to do with travelling
:28:34. > :28:36.abroad. First off, Simon Calder
:28:37. > :28:38.is here with Bill Bucknell, who contacted us unhappy
:28:39. > :28:53.with the price he paid You went with your son and
:28:54. > :29:00.daughter-in-law. They had a normal cabin, with bunk beds for the
:29:01. > :29:07.children. I booked a single cabin. It only had a single bed. I got
:29:08. > :29:11.charged 48% supplement on what they paid per person. I just think that
:29:12. > :29:20.is penalising the single person unreasonably. Why were you in a twin
:29:21. > :29:27.room? I wasn't. They were. They had one bed out, one bed was in? Single
:29:28. > :29:31.cabins with one single bed. What do you make of that? There are more
:29:32. > :29:37.single cabins on the cruise liners to reflect more people like Bill
:29:38. > :29:42.travelling on their own. The cruise says it is not a supplement, you
:29:43. > :29:47.have got a very in demand cabin, bigger bed than normal, two thirds
:29:48. > :29:53.the size of a twin room and the usual facilities. The reality is the
:29:54. > :29:57.cruise business is designed on the basis of all of the ships will be
:29:58. > :30:01.full all of the time. If there is only one of you in a cabin, you will
:30:02. > :30:07.not be praying all of the tips that are almost compulsory these days,
:30:08. > :30:11.you will not be spending money on expensive alcohol, you will not be
:30:12. > :30:16.taking excursions. What do you make of that? I would disagree with that.
:30:17. > :30:22.They get tips, whether you are single or not. They would get twice
:30:23. > :30:27.as much if there was two people in the cabin. I have no problem with a
:30:28. > :30:31.supplement and they called it a supplement for occupying a twin
:30:32. > :30:35.cabin on my own. You will have to fight this out. You will not get
:30:36. > :30:42.much sympathy! Expedition ships going to Antarctica and they will
:30:43. > :30:46.often give you... I do not think the industry will change. I am sure
:30:47. > :30:52.there will be people watching who will agree with Bill on this issue.
:30:53. > :31:02.I will leave them chatting. Here we have Martin James.
:31:03. > :31:06.She went away to Tenerife and kept receiving calls from a number
:31:07. > :31:09.She didn't answer them, but when she got home,
:31:10. > :31:12.she saw she'd been charged as if she had.
:31:13. > :31:15.And there's a very simple explanation why, isn't there?
:31:16. > :31:20.I was really surprised. And a bit outrageous. It turns out what has
:31:21. > :31:23.probably been happening is she has been receiving voice mails and even
:31:24. > :31:28.though she has not been picking them up, she has been hit with charges
:31:29. > :31:33.and the charges are not obvious. Even if I switch off my phone, I
:31:34. > :31:38.still would pick up the messages? Potentially so. Phones can be
:31:39. > :31:41.different. It can be tricky to know if your phone is off. The safest way
:31:42. > :31:48.is to turn off your phone for the entire trip or get a new SIM card.
:31:49. > :31:52.You are saying there is no clear-cut answer? No. There needs to be
:31:53. > :31:55.something done because the regulations could be tighter. I will
:31:56. > :32:14.get onto this. Good news for Linda. with her phone company -
:32:15. > :32:18.as a gesture of goodwill - I'm sure a lot of people will have
:32:19. > :32:25.been caught out with that one. All this week, we'll be catching up
:32:26. > :32:28.on some of the stories we've And here's the latest
:32:29. > :32:33.on a couple more. Earlier this year, on our Holiday
:32:34. > :32:43.series we met unhappy customers of the travel company, Diamond
:32:44. > :32:47.Holidays. John Essex, 86 at the time, chose to book a coach holiday
:32:48. > :32:52.for a weekend break to London last year. The company's website looked
:32:53. > :32:57.impressive and professional foot it looked like a good deal, a great
:32:58. > :33:01.price. Months later and two weeks before they were due to go that they
:33:02. > :33:05.were finally sent the itinerary for the trip, only to spot the coach
:33:06. > :33:11.journey from Brighton to London would take a whopping six and a half
:33:12. > :33:17.hours. From Brighton to London is 58 miles. The way the holiday company
:33:18. > :33:22.would take us would have been 170 miles. It is three times the
:33:23. > :33:26.distance and three times the amount of time. John and Stephen tried to
:33:27. > :33:32.ask if they could travel by train instead. That failed and they asked
:33:33. > :33:36.to cancel but they were told if they did, they would lose their money. I
:33:37. > :33:40.told them I was 86 and registered blind but they were not interested.
:33:41. > :33:45.After showing their story with as they did get their money back. After
:33:46. > :33:51.our original report went out, we continue to hear from people unhappy
:33:52. > :33:55.with Diamond Holidays. In March, the company announced it had gone into
:33:56. > :34:00.administration due to financial difficulties. The plans for 16,000
:34:01. > :34:06.passengers were scuppered. As the company's passages were protected by
:34:07. > :34:11.ABTA it is expected they will all get their money back. Last Friday we
:34:12. > :34:15.reported on the growing trend for new-build homes to be sold leasehold
:34:16. > :34:20.rather than freehold. It means owners have to pay an annual fee to
:34:21. > :34:24.lease or rent the land which belongs to someone else, usually the
:34:25. > :34:29.developer or another third party. In many cases, that fee can double
:34:30. > :34:35.every few years, a fact that many purchasers say was not made clear,
:34:36. > :34:40.including Lisa from Merseyside. We had no inclination at the ground
:34:41. > :34:45.rent would increase, never mind double and continue to double every
:34:46. > :34:51.period of time. It has just been a lot of worry. In Lisa's case, the
:34:52. > :34:57.?250 ground rent with double every ten years if she stays there for 30
:34:58. > :35:03.years, she would be paying an annual fee of ?2000. It is really stressful
:35:04. > :35:07.and has made us worry about our future, financial security and how
:35:08. > :35:13.we will get our kids to university. The original developer of the estate
:35:14. > :35:18.said whilst it believes the terms of the lease were set out clearly and
:35:19. > :35:22.simply and buyers received independent, professional, legal
:35:23. > :35:26.advice it was putting right difficulties faced by customers
:35:27. > :35:32.because of this. It is converting these doubling leases to ones which
:35:33. > :35:35.are significantly less expensive and, in the future, will now only
:35:36. > :35:39.sell the homes of freehold for the is good news many but will not help
:35:40. > :35:43.Lisa and their neighbours. Their leases have been sold on to another
:35:44. > :35:47.company. There are plenty of other developers selling homes in this
:35:48. > :35:48.way. That is why there are growing calls for action to tackle this
:35:49. > :35:51.right across the industry. Well, we had a huge response
:35:52. > :35:53.to that item last week, with lots of frustrated homeowners
:35:54. > :35:55.getting in touch. And I'm joined now by Paula Higgins
:35:56. > :36:11.from the campaign and advice group Clearly, we've touched a nerve on
:36:12. > :36:18.this. Leasehold has been around for a long time and it is justifiable if
:36:19. > :36:22.you are buying a flat and need to share costs. There is no reason for
:36:23. > :36:27.this with houses. The only reason this to make money out of it. And
:36:28. > :36:33.making a lot and increasing amounts judging by what we saw. Yes. Rights
:36:34. > :36:37.are not there. People are not aware of one of the biggest problems is
:36:38. > :36:41.when people buy a leasehold home and they think they can buy the
:36:42. > :36:45.freehold, they find it has been sold to someone else who is looking to
:36:46. > :36:51.make as much money as possible. Does the small print save the owner of
:36:52. > :36:58.the freehold has the right to up the amount they will charge? It is set
:36:59. > :37:03.in the lease. It will say if it is a doubling of ground rent or whatever.
:37:04. > :37:07.The owner of the freehold can charge extra charges for things. ?100 to
:37:08. > :37:12.put in a request or something like that. That is where people get
:37:13. > :37:18.stuck. With a freehold home you can be charged thousands to convert an
:37:19. > :37:23.extension or a room. What happens if your developer sells up to someone
:37:24. > :37:26.else? That is where it is difficult. If you have a leasehold flat you
:37:27. > :37:31.have the first right to refuse, you have the right to buy the freehold.
:37:32. > :37:35.That does not happen with leasehold houses. The law needs to be changed.
:37:36. > :37:40.At some point you said people should look out for themselves make sure
:37:41. > :37:44.they read the small print. Should they be taking specialist advice
:37:45. > :37:53.before they agree to sign on the line? People should not rely on
:37:54. > :37:57.this. They should get an independent solicitor. That might be why some
:37:58. > :38:03.people have the problem they do today. It is a big purchase and they
:38:04. > :38:07.might regret it later on if they get it wrong. Thank you very much
:38:08. > :38:10.indeed. Good advice. I am sure people will be taking that.
:38:11. > :38:13.Well, a lot of people are using the word scandal
:38:14. > :38:15.We'll keep you posted on what happens.
:38:16. > :38:17.Next today though, we've the consumer confessions
:38:18. > :38:22.Today it's the turn of a face you'll normally see on the Breakfast sofa.
:38:23. > :38:27.But as you'll hear, she has another string to her bow.
:38:28. > :38:35.Millions of us are used to waking up to her on the BBC breakfast sofa
:38:36. > :38:39.every morning. France has elected Emmanuel Macron as its next
:38:40. > :38:42.president. As a presenter and journalists, Louise Minchin gets to
:38:43. > :38:52.interview some of the most famous faces in the world. You are tired, a
:38:53. > :38:58.little bit jet-lagged. What you might not know is that she is also a
:38:59. > :39:01.successful triathlete, who has represented Great Britain in the
:39:02. > :39:06.World Championships. When it comes to all things consumer, what are her
:39:07. > :39:14.top tips? It is great to see you on the set of Breakfast. It is lovely.
:39:15. > :39:20.I normally get up at 3:30am. This morning I got up at 3:40am. Getting
:39:21. > :39:24.up at that time, do have any energy left for shopping? I do not know how
:39:25. > :39:31.I would cope without the internet foot if I shop online for food,"
:39:32. > :39:37.things my daughter's School, so much time is saved by looking something
:39:38. > :39:46.up and doing it that way. You have worked for a long time on Eat you
:39:47. > :39:55.and yours on Radio 4. If you have a complaint with a product, it is
:39:56. > :39:59.worth sticking with it. If you have a problem, chances are someone else
:40:00. > :40:02.has as well. We were offered compensation after we have problems
:40:03. > :40:07.with a holiday for that this is what they offered us. Where we happy? We
:40:08. > :40:13.went back to them and had a negotiation. It can be brave to do
:40:14. > :40:18.that and say, if you are not happy, put your hand up and say something.
:40:19. > :40:27.You are someone who likes a bargain as well. Money was quite tight, so I
:40:28. > :40:32.was always looking for a bargain. If the bicycle cost ?200 and this cost
:40:33. > :40:41.50 and has two wheels and this has two Mo wheels, I would buy the one
:40:42. > :40:48.at 50. I will always look at price will do in the supermarket I would
:40:49. > :40:52.think, this loo paper is ?1.19 and this is ?1.08, I will have that one.
:40:53. > :40:59.I just think every pound in every penny, it all matters. It does.
:41:00. > :41:08.Thank you a much indeed. I am with her on that point of choice. She
:41:09. > :41:21.represented the country, represented Great Britain. Talking of superfit,
:41:22. > :41:27.we are joined by two superfit gentleman.
:41:28. > :41:36.Lily asks if paying with a debit card has the same cover as paying
:41:37. > :41:39.with a credit card? It is often recommended to pay with a credit
:41:40. > :41:44.card when booking a holiday but debit cards are free. We know that
:41:45. > :41:47.paying a fee can sometimes be off-putting. Paying with a credit
:41:48. > :41:52.card does provide you with extra protection than direct debit. Our
:41:53. > :41:59.advice would be comic use both of them rather than using bank
:42:00. > :42:04.transfers. There you have no protection at all. If you ask land,
:42:05. > :42:08.you will lose out. Using a credit card will provide you with some
:42:09. > :42:15.extra rejection. It is wise when you are making a big purchase. Alison
:42:16. > :42:20.was listening to the conversation we were having earlier about delayed
:42:21. > :42:25.flights will. She said she was on a delayed flight, over five hours. The
:42:26. > :42:30.airline agreed to pay compensation. She was told she would get the money
:42:31. > :42:36.in 14 days but a month later she has not got anything. I would write a
:42:37. > :42:42.friendly letter saying if she does not here in seven days, it she will
:42:43. > :42:45.be asking her solicitor. I did not make it absolutely clear the airline
:42:46. > :42:49.does not always have to pay out if it is something like a security
:42:50. > :42:53.alert which closed Leeds Bradford Airport or strikes or whether, they
:42:54. > :42:57.do not have to pay but they do have to look after your provide you with
:42:58. > :43:02.meals and, if necessary, accommodation to get you to a need
:43:03. > :43:07.to be. If fraudsters are trying to steal money from your accounts, why
:43:08. > :43:12.can't banks direct police to the fraudsters? That is a really good
:43:13. > :43:17.question. I think bank should be doing more about this. As I said
:43:18. > :43:25.earlier, if you pay by credit card or debit card to a scammer, you can
:43:26. > :43:32.get your money back. Thank you for coming in again to
:43:33. > :43:39.raise dash today. But we'll be here again tomorrow
:43:40. > :43:41.when we'll be looking at the dramatic rise
:43:42. > :43:43.in pension fraud. We'll hear how the money some people
:43:44. > :43:46.had saved for years has And we'll have advice to stop
:43:47. > :43:50.the same thing happening to you. Plus, are those smart meters we're
:43:51. > :43:54.all being told to install quite