:00:29. > :00:36.Hello and welcome to Watchdog Daily. We're with you live for the next 45
:00:36. > :00:38.minutes. This morning: Nectar. Tesco Clubcard. Avios. How the
:00:38. > :00:42.country's most popular reward schemes can end up costing you
:00:42. > :00:47.money. Carnival. Royal Caribbean. Disney. Taking a cruise with any of
:00:47. > :00:51.them? The high price you'll pay for staying connected. And rising bills.
:00:51. > :01:01.Confusing tariffs. Just who is keeping the energy companies in
:01:01. > :01:02.
:01:02. > :01:12.check? Also on today's programme: Just leave those there. Gold.
:01:12. > :01:15.Supposedly the best investment around. Leave them for a second. We
:01:15. > :01:17.are going to go through it. Don't make it any worse for yourself.
:01:17. > :01:20.First, loyalty schemes operated by supermarkets, chain stores and
:01:20. > :01:22.airlines. They are supposed to reward regular customers for their
:01:22. > :01:28.repeat business. But, incredibly, they can actually end up costing
:01:28. > :01:34.those loyal customers more. Rani Price reports. They are an
:01:34. > :01:39.effective way of keeping customers and winning back lapsed ones - most
:01:39. > :01:45.importantly for the companies that run them - loyalty schemes boost
:01:45. > :01:50.the bottom line. They pay manic on a regular basis and, in return,
:01:50. > :01:53.feel like they are being recorded. Messing around with a loyalty
:01:53. > :01:58.scheme is risky, as British Airways' planned when it announced
:01:58. > :02:05.drastic changes to the air miles scheme. The transition from Air
:02:05. > :02:10.Miles, which was long loved, to Avios, it came as a bit of a shock
:02:10. > :02:15.to customers. They promised exciting new benefits and expected
:02:15. > :02:22.similar rewards to the old scheme. It seems some of those benefits are
:02:22. > :02:25.not as good as customers expect. Mind you, delved deeper into the
:02:25. > :02:31.rewards offered by other long established schemes and you may not
:02:31. > :02:34.find what you expect either. Take the Tesco Clubcard scheme. The
:02:34. > :02:42.supermarket promises members they will be rewarded each tonne a hand
:02:42. > :02:48.over money for their weekly shop. - - each time they hand over money.
:02:48. > :02:53.was trying to book a family holiday. They wanted to use our Tesco
:02:53. > :02:58.Clubcard reward points. While searching, I was using Cosmos,
:02:58. > :03:02.afterwards I actually found out we are not saving any money by using
:03:02. > :03:09.the Clubcard points. Everything seems to be a bit dearer than
:03:09. > :03:19.paying director cosmos itself. This is the cosmos sight. This is their
:03:19. > :03:20.
:03:20. > :03:27.price per person. -- Cosmos site. This is the Tesco one and it is
:03:27. > :03:32.another �60 dearer to wattages direct from a holiday company.
:03:32. > :03:36.reward for booking a holiday would be more expensive. You use all your
:03:36. > :03:40.vouchers up and you pay more for the holiday. They are giving you
:03:40. > :03:47.with one hand and taking away with the other and you are not saying
:03:47. > :03:52.any money at all. What about Nectar? You can collect points at
:03:52. > :03:57.several retail outlets to spend on the treats you deserve. Liz decided
:03:57. > :04:02.to do a regular weekly shop at Sainsbury's in order to build the
:04:02. > :04:10.points up. She went to use them to pay for a birthday trip to Paris on
:04:10. > :04:17.the Eurostar. The price using Nectar points �180, on the Eurostar
:04:17. > :04:24.website, at �168. By booking direct, she would be �12 better off and
:04:24. > :04:29.have all her Nectar points. What about the airline's? Flybe claims
:04:29. > :04:34.its awards for all is the UK's most generous scheme. Jackie Hastings
:04:34. > :04:41.claims otherwise. She is a frequent flyer and we had to catch up with
:04:41. > :04:46.her on webcam. I would like to book some flights are on the Flybe
:04:46. > :04:49.website from Birmingham to Belfast using my loyalty points. I
:04:49. > :04:55.discovered it was more expensive to book them using loyalty points than
:04:55. > :05:00.it was to book them straight through the website. The heard it
:05:00. > :05:07.right. Birmingham to Belfast flights with the reward points cost
:05:07. > :05:12.�58.62. The same journey with no report points, �48.63. What was it
:05:12. > :05:17.about the scheme being the most generous? Had it not been for the
:05:17. > :05:25.fact I had gone and checked myself, what the price of the flight would
:05:25. > :05:32.be absurd the loyalty scheme, I would have ended up paying more. --
:05:32. > :05:37.without the loyalty scheme. Back to Avios. Surely, after all their bad
:05:37. > :05:43.press, they are determined to prove the new reward programmes still
:05:43. > :05:48.offers fantastic benefits to frequent flyers. When we did a
:05:48. > :05:53.round-the-world trip about three years ago with BA, I thought it was
:05:53. > :05:58.time to sign up for the benefits you are supposed to get. We started
:05:58. > :06:03.collecting Avios points and I have travelled with BA at every time
:06:03. > :06:07.since. Earlier this year, the late his grandson was born in New York,
:06:07. > :06:14.the perfect time, they thought, to take advantage of all the points
:06:14. > :06:22.they had built up. At that point, we had just under 40,000 points. I
:06:22. > :06:28.thought, maybe it is the time to use them and go on a cheaper flight.
:06:28. > :06:34.For �95 he could buy extra points which would secured him a New
:06:34. > :06:40.Yorker flight. Guess what, the flights were �114 cheaper without
:06:40. > :06:46.using Avios. The last thing I expected, frankly, is that I would
:06:46. > :06:56.get be dearer price, which potentially was over �100 Dereham.
:06:56. > :06:56.
:06:56. > :07:01.Stephen complain to BA. He said the scheme was flexible. He could
:07:01. > :07:06.cancel his flights. I did not want a flexible ticket. I knew when I
:07:06. > :07:11.wanted to fly out and come back. I always thought a loyalty scheme was
:07:11. > :07:15.there to actually benefit a customer and give them some
:07:15. > :07:22.advantage. The Avios scheme seems to be the total reversed - to be a
:07:22. > :07:26.member and build up points you get charged more. In their response to
:07:26. > :07:36.another disgruntled passenger we have heard from, the explanation
:07:36. > :07:37.
:07:37. > :07:41.If you are part of a loyalty scheme that is supposed to make you more
:07:41. > :07:46.loyal towards the company and give you significant benefits, in no way
:07:46. > :07:51.should using the loyalty scheme cost you more than you could have
:07:51. > :07:56.obtained in any other way. Rani is in the Mail Room now. What do those
:07:56. > :07:59.companies have to say? Well, Sophie, we have heard from BA and Avios who
:07:59. > :08:02.have repeated the explanation they gave to Stephen Eastgate. That is
:08:03. > :08:06.the flight you buy with the reward points is flexible. So, unlike a
:08:06. > :08:13.low priced economy ticket, you can change it - or cancel - and still
:08:13. > :08:16.get a refund. They say the scheme offers great value for money.
:08:16. > :08:19.Nectar says that, in most cases, using points to buy tickets will be
:08:19. > :08:23.cheaper than purchasing direct from Eurostar. That's not always the
:08:23. > :08:27.case though. So, they advise their customers to do whatever saves them
:08:27. > :08:31.the most money. Flybe says it occasionally offers extremely
:08:31. > :08:35.discounted rates on some routes. That is why they can be cheaper
:08:35. > :08:39.than the Rewards-For-All flights. They recommend that customers check
:08:39. > :08:44.the fares and, if necessary, retain the points for other flights. And
:08:44. > :08:50.finally, Tesco. It says around 250,000 Clubcard customers have
:08:50. > :08:53.benefitted from cheaper Cosmos holidays. It admits that opting for
:08:53. > :08:57.the Cosmos discount can be less expensive, depending on the
:08:57. > :09:02.vouchers the customer is redeeming. Tesco says it will make this
:09:03. > :09:05.clearer on its website. And, if you would like to comment on that, or
:09:06. > :09:11.any of today's other stories, here's how to do so. For e-mails,
:09:11. > :09:17.the address is watchdog@bbc.co.uk. If you'd prefer to send a text,
:09:17. > :09:20.then dial 88822 and start your message with the letters WD. And,
:09:20. > :09:23.if you want to join the Twitter discussion, our address and hashtag
:09:23. > :09:26.are on your screens. Now, throughout the week, we have been
:09:26. > :09:29.following the work of the Midlands consumer cops. And, today, we are
:09:29. > :09:39.heading to the UK's second biggest city to see how Trading Standards
:09:39. > :09:40.
:09:40. > :09:46.officers there police the beauty Welcome to the Birmingham assay
:09:46. > :09:51.Office - the largest of its kind in the world. They test the hallmarks
:09:51. > :09:57.of gold, silver and platinum. If any jury does not bear a mark like
:09:57. > :10:02.this, in the case of gold it is over a gram in weight, it cannot be
:10:02. > :10:07.sold legally. The strong links with the jewellery trade go back
:10:07. > :10:12.hundreds of years. A century ago it employed more than 30,000 people.
:10:12. > :10:17.It is still at the heart of the UK industry today, producing 40% of
:10:17. > :10:21.all the countries jewellery items. Hundreds of businesses are involved.
:10:21. > :10:31.Sadly not all live up to the reputation of Birmingham as a
:10:31. > :10:33.centre of jury excellence. -- jewellery. Today, these trading
:10:34. > :10:38.standards officers have the sub- standard companies in their sights.
:10:38. > :10:42.They are clamping down of retailers, who failed to comply with
:10:42. > :10:46.hallmarking regulations. It is important that consumers are aware
:10:46. > :10:51.of the quality of golf they are buying. If somebody describe
:10:51. > :10:56.something as being 22 carat gold, and you buy it, and you find that
:10:56. > :11:01.it is nine carat gold, you have been done, basically. The hallmarks
:11:01. > :11:07.on any item is a guarantee for customers that the quality of the
:11:07. > :11:11.gold is what it should be. Before carrying out formal inspections,
:11:11. > :11:16.the officers need to know that items without a hallmark are being
:11:16. > :11:26.sold to the public. To establish that, they go into jeweller's
:11:26. > :11:29.
:11:29. > :11:37.undercover, posing as ordinary customers. What have you got?
:11:37. > :11:45.Gold, EF. He is shown in number of items, including a trait of rings.
:11:45. > :11:50.Immediately they set off alarm bells. -- a tray. I opened the box
:11:50. > :11:58.and there were a couple without hallmarks. I had a look at some of
:11:58. > :12:05.the other jewellery, like earrings. I could not see any hallmarks.
:12:05. > :12:09.you think he is the guy? Potentially. The team can now go in
:12:09. > :12:15.and announce themselves. Officers have the power to seize any items
:12:15. > :12:22.they believe are being traded illegally. Good afternoon. I am
:12:22. > :12:27.from trading standards. What we planned to do today is inspect the
:12:27. > :12:33.jury on your premises. The are checking that everything has a
:12:33. > :12:40.hallmark. -- bead jewellery. First up, those suspect rings. Can you
:12:40. > :12:48.show me the rings you showed me earlier on? They are not for sale.
:12:48. > :12:58.I did not supply you. Did I? were going to sell them to me,
:12:58. > :13:06.won't you? No. Other suspect items up on display. That one should have
:13:06. > :13:12.a hallmark. These ones are definitely not. We have found two
:13:12. > :13:17.sets of earrings and some necklaces and bracelets as well - bangles. We
:13:17. > :13:22.suspect these items do not have a hallmark. Based on the inspection
:13:22. > :13:27.we will probably have to take these are way for further examination.
:13:27. > :13:35.The officers seize eight items in total. When they are bad DUP, they
:13:35. > :13:43.will be sent to the assets office in Birmingham. -- backed up. As
:13:43. > :13:49.well as targeting jury that is not hallmarked, they aim to target
:13:49. > :13:56.items that are in breach of the sales Act. Another two items have
:13:56. > :14:02.caught their attention. I was shown some rings which bore the
:14:02. > :14:08.trademarks of Mercedes and Nike which also did not have a hallmark.
:14:08. > :14:16.Time for a second undercover shopping trip. Have you got BMW?
:14:16. > :14:23.How much would that be? The 417. 417. Having established they are on
:14:23. > :14:27.sale, he reveals the true identity. I am from City Council trading
:14:27. > :14:33.standards. The Trade and accepts the officers have to carry out
:14:33. > :14:39.inspections but orders us to leave. -- the trader. Everything we find
:14:39. > :14:46.that does not have a hallmark, we will need to take those away as
:14:46. > :14:54.well. As the officers find more problem jury, the trader becomes
:14:54. > :15:01.agitated. Leave those there. Leave them for a second. Do not make it
:15:01. > :15:11.worse for yourself. According to the trader, this is 22 carat.
:15:11. > :15:11.
:15:11. > :15:17.take it all LEAs are 22 carat gold and not 24. -- all these. They only
:15:17. > :15:27.have his word for it. I do not think these have hallmarks. Do you
:15:27. > :15:28.
:15:28. > :15:32.want to start bear? One, two, three, four, of which we think may be
:15:32. > :15:41.suspicious. They are inside the shop for almost an hour and seized
:15:41. > :15:49.80 items. I know it is difficult for you but it is difficult for us
:15:49. > :15:53.as well. We are here to do a job. Today has been a bad day for you.
:15:53. > :15:58.It was quite clear that a large majority of the jewellery on
:15:58. > :16:05.display did not have hallmarks. He did not say he not because I think
:16:05. > :16:14.he was being sheepish. It is a big loss to the trader. �25,000 worth.
:16:14. > :16:19.Following the seizures, all the jury was brought back here for
:16:19. > :16:23.testing. We will give you the results later in the programme. We
:16:23. > :16:29.will also look at another operation targeting stores selling illegal
:16:29. > :16:35.and sometimes dangerous cosmetic. Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Disney,
:16:35. > :16:39.just sum of the big cruise lines expecting a bumper few weeks as
:16:39. > :16:44.people set off on winter holidays. If you want to stay connected
:16:44. > :16:54.online during your trip, you can expect a big bill, as our mystery
:16:54. > :17:00.
:17:00. > :17:05.Life on board a cruise - laid back, relaxing and luxurious. It can be
:17:05. > :17:11.expensive, too, even if you buy an all exclusive package. Extras like
:17:11. > :17:20.alcohol, beauty treatments and shore excursions often come with a
:17:20. > :17:25.cost, and then there is the things that some companies add on. We had
:17:25. > :17:31.to pay �65 for my daughter and paddled up front to have flexible
:17:31. > :17:35.dining. I don't think anybody should have to pay a gratuity up
:17:35. > :17:39.front, let alone an eight-month-old baby. One of the things we looked
:17:39. > :17:48.at was the policy on gratuities which stated that each person would
:17:48. > :17:58.be charged $11.50 per day, and we felt that this was excessive.
:17:58. > :18:01.there is one charge that cruise liners impose, using the internet,
:18:01. > :18:07.which although it is now available for free in many hotels and coffee
:18:07. > :18:11.bars, using it on a cruise liner can be costly. In the old days,
:18:11. > :18:15.when the internet was new and exciting and different, it can
:18:15. > :18:20.understand them charging �10 per hour for internet access, but now
:18:20. > :18:23.it is so ubiquitous, I wanted for nothing. And I am absolutely going
:18:23. > :18:29.to refuse to pay the sort of charges that some shipping lines
:18:29. > :18:35.are hoping to get away with. much would that be? Time to find
:18:35. > :18:41.out. Our team inquired about booking with 10 of the world's
:18:41. > :18:47.biggest cruise companies. Oh, just one more question. Are there any
:18:47. > :18:57.internet charges? First up, the cost per minute. Like most
:18:57. > :18:59.
:18:59. > :19:09.operators, Royal Caribbean quotes in US currency. 65 is around 40p.
:19:09. > :19:30.
:19:30. > :19:36.Ms C wouldn't allow a success to the internet per minute - they sell
:19:36. > :19:43.an hour for �20. Many opt to buy packages. The length of those
:19:44. > :19:53.packages varies, and so, too, do the costs. I was just wondering if
:19:54. > :20:05.
:20:05. > :20:15.they wear any internet charges on With many companies also charges a
:20:15. > :20:36.
:20:36. > :20:42.�2.50 activation fee, why is using It sounds like it could be a
:20:42. > :20:52.plausible excuse, but is it really? After all, Costa cruises also
:20:52. > :20:54.
:20:54. > :20:59.That is 160% cheaper than some of the others. Maybe their technology
:20:59. > :21:03.is completely different. Do use satellite on board, is that how it
:21:03. > :21:13.works? There are other costs that left our shoppers baffled. Disney
:21:13. > :21:14.
:21:14. > :21:17.applied different internet prices Could it be they are just making it
:21:17. > :21:21.up as they sail along? If I would try to justify the sorts of charges
:21:21. > :21:25.that some shipping lines are getting away with, I would say,
:21:25. > :21:29.there are special reasons why ours is ultra expensive, but it is in
:21:29. > :21:35.fact whatever they think they can get away with. They will simply
:21:35. > :21:39.extract as much cash from your wallet as they possibly can.
:21:39. > :21:44.Not surprisingly, all the cruise companies deny that, but how do
:21:44. > :21:48.they explain those expensive wi-fi charges?
:21:48. > :21:52.All the ones we spoke to blamed the high cost of satellite technology,
:21:52. > :21:54.which is the only way internet can be delivered while at sea. The
:21:54. > :21:58.Passenger Shipping Association says his members are looking at ways to
:21:58. > :22:02.make it more affordable, and many offer packages to suit guests
:22:02. > :22:12.individual needs. Royal Caribbean and Carnival say they are already
:22:12. > :22:17.
:22:17. > :22:21.Ms C have cut their charges, and say they do not apply registration
:22:22. > :22:25.or activation fees. Norwegian Cruise Line's say they offer
:22:25. > :22:29.internet services at a fair and competitive rate.
:22:29. > :22:33.And as for the on-board gratuities or Tipping, the cruise lines point
:22:33. > :22:38.out that these are standard practice to make things easier for
:22:39. > :22:44.passengers, and there are optional in most cases. Back to that
:22:44. > :22:51.crackdown on illegal jewellery in Birmingham. We saw trading
:22:51. > :22:56.standards seize items were the retail value of �20,000.
:22:56. > :23:02.After those seizures, goods from both stores were bought here to the
:23:02. > :23:06.Birmingham Assay Office. Two traders were selling some of that
:23:06. > :23:10.jury as 22 carat gold, but as none of the items appear to have a
:23:10. > :23:14.hallmark, there was no way of telling for sure until the Trading
:23:14. > :23:19.Standards team deployed their secret weapon. Ian Bailey is his
:23:19. > :23:26.name. He is the man who can prove whether the gold is as pure as is
:23:26. > :23:30.claimed. The process is that we will waive the jury to see whether
:23:30. > :23:35.it is the compulsory wait for hallmarking. Trading standards may
:23:35. > :23:39.have missed the hallmark. It is established that all of the eight
:23:39. > :23:46.items seized on the first shop are not legally more marked. As for the
:23:46. > :23:51.second, it was 76 out of 80. Now we are going to test the gold content
:23:51. > :23:55.of the ring using this piece of equipment here, which is an X-ray
:23:56. > :24:04.instrument. After initial testing, we can see an approximate valuation
:24:04. > :24:10.here. It is 89.7% gold. To be 22 carat gold, we would expect it to
:24:10. > :24:14.be a minimum of 91.6% gold. If this ring were submitted for hallmarking,
:24:14. > :24:21.it would be marked not 22 carat gold put down to the next Standard,
:24:21. > :24:23.which would be 18 carat gold. tests show that three items from
:24:23. > :24:32.the first shop and 11 from the second will have a lesser character
:24:32. > :24:36.than stated. We definitely have offences there, not just for not
:24:36. > :24:40.having it hallmarked but for the description of the items as well.
:24:40. > :24:47.We will call in the trade as for a formal interview and get their side
:24:47. > :24:50.of the story as to what they were doing in possession of these items.
:24:50. > :24:53.The two traders were later formally interviewed, and the team has now
:24:53. > :24:59.passed on their reports for consideration by the City Council
:25:00. > :25:04.legal section, who will decide if action will be taken.
:25:04. > :25:10.Durie is just one branch of the fashion and beauty trade policed by
:25:10. > :25:14.trading standards. Another area of concern is the selling of cosmetics,
:25:14. > :25:17.from hair dye containing banned ingredients to skin bleaching
:25:17. > :25:24.products and incorrectly labelled products, the team are on constant
:25:24. > :25:28.lookout. Today, Tariq and some female colleagues are having a
:25:28. > :25:33.crack down. We're going to be looking at certain cosmetics which
:25:33. > :25:37.are aimed predominantly at the Afro-Caribbean and Asian community.
:25:37. > :25:43.We found they were being illegally imported, and some of them contain
:25:43. > :25:47.illegal substances such as lead. Last year, the team inspected 36
:25:47. > :25:52.premises and found 20 of them selling illegal cosmetics. Any
:25:52. > :25:59.repeat offending could cost the trade is concerned a �5,000 fine,
:25:59. > :26:03.or up to six months in jail. Are we all ready to go? The operation
:26:03. > :26:13.begins with a test purchase at one of the city's Asian supermarkets.
:26:13. > :26:13.
:26:13. > :26:17.Here, one of the officers by the skin lightening product. She is
:26:17. > :26:25.just asking somebody have something she is looking at is a bleaching
:26:25. > :26:29.creams. The officer by is the cream and brings it out to show her boss.
:26:29. > :26:34.The decider and immediate action. Plastic spoons could suggested
:26:34. > :26:39.contains mercury, which is a banned ingredient. Although Sharon can't
:26:39. > :26:49.be sure, she is keen to investigate further. We will go back in and see
:26:49. > :26:53.what else they have got. It is time to break cover. Hello. I'm from
:26:53. > :26:56.Birmingham City Council trading standards. An officer has come in
:26:56. > :27:00.and put his to skin lightening cream which has been tested
:27:00. > :27:04.previously bias and found to contain illegal substances. So what
:27:04. > :27:09.I'm going to do is have a look at it the other cosmetics you have on
:27:09. > :27:13.sale, and if necessary, we will have to take them away. Sharon
:27:13. > :27:22.start to inspection by taking a closer look at the ingredients.
:27:22. > :27:27.This product here, a hair tonic, it states that it contains lead, which
:27:27. > :27:31.is banned, so we will be taking those with us today. Lead can be
:27:31. > :27:36.used as a darkening agent in some hair dye. Using Mercury on the
:27:36. > :27:41.scheme will lighten it. Both substances are toxic, but at least
:27:41. > :27:46.they are displayed. Other labels contain little or no information.
:27:46. > :27:51.am looking at this product. It looks like a hen a product which
:27:51. > :27:57.you apply to the skin. There is no details of where it has come from,
:27:57. > :28:00.who has imported it. It is clearly made in Pakistan, so whoever has
:28:00. > :28:05.imported it hasn't declared it on the packaging, so that would be a
:28:05. > :28:08.breach of the regulations. We will be taking those as well. Any
:28:08. > :28:15.cosmetic we are aware of that contains an illegal substance will
:28:15. > :28:20.be removed. Things like this shouldn't be openly on display all
:28:20. > :28:24.for sale and a supermarket. There has got to be some sort of
:28:24. > :28:34.guidelines for some of these products, and above all, they have
:28:34. > :28:34.
:28:34. > :28:38.got to comply with the labelling. From this one store, the team sees
:28:38. > :28:44.11 bags of product, including six brands of skin whitening cream and
:28:44. > :28:47.eight bottles of hair dye. Samples will be tested for safety, and the
:28:47. > :28:51.possible presence of banned ingredients.
:28:51. > :28:54.If you're watching on Wednesday, you will have seen how gas and
:28:54. > :28:57.electricity companies try to tempt us with new deals that include
:28:57. > :29:01.attractive sweeteners like free energy monitors and football
:29:01. > :29:05.matches. They look good, but when a mystery shoppers investigated, they
:29:05. > :29:11.found that some of these could work out more expensive, and most often
:29:11. > :29:16.worse value than the cheapest tariff we found that came with no
:29:16. > :29:20.extras at all. Ofgem has already warned the Big Six energy providers
:29:20. > :29:25.about confusing tariffs, and their director of communications, Ian
:29:25. > :29:31.Marley, joins us now. These enticing offers that often leave
:29:31. > :29:35.you worse off, will you stop them? It is worth saying that your film
:29:35. > :29:38.that you showed on Wednesday it illustrates very well the type of
:29:38. > :29:44.complexity we identified in our review, which really is a problem
:29:44. > :29:51.for the market. We identified but a combination of tariff complexity
:29:51. > :29:54.and poor supplier behaviour is stifling competition. We want to
:29:54. > :30:00.make the market simpler and fairer. Up so would you be stopping those
:30:00. > :30:04.kind of promotions? We spoke to thousands of consumers and consumer
:30:04. > :30:08.groups, and really listened to what they are saying, and they do value
:30:08. > :30:12.choice. But what we need to do is make sure there is a balance
:30:12. > :30:18.between choice and understand ability of the market. So what we
:30:18. > :30:22.are saying is we would ban certain things. We would ban complex,
:30:22. > :30:27.multi-tiered tariffs. We would limit the energy companies to only
:30:27. > :30:31.being able to offer four tariffs per supplier. And we would get them
:30:31. > :30:33.to put the cheapest deal that they offer on the bill so that if they
:30:33. > :30:38.were offering these bundled products, they would clearly be
:30:38. > :30:42.able to see how much more they were paying for them versus that
:30:42. > :30:49.cheapest deal. The one thing you can't do is get them to bring down
:30:49. > :30:54.their prices. We do know that there is a rising pressure on prices over
:30:54. > :30:57.the last few years. Wholesale prices have gone up. We need to
:30:57. > :31:02.replace our ageing infrastructure and moved to a low carbon economy.
:31:02. > :31:06.Those things do cost money. What consumers need to have confidence
:31:06. > :31:09.in is that they will pay no more than they need to, and that is why
:31:09. > :31:12.we are pushing forward with our reforms, to make sure the
:31:12. > :31:17.competition really can work in this market to keep pressure on those
:31:17. > :31:20.prices. Do you really think you're doing enough? Some people will say
:31:20. > :31:25.that you are just tinkering at the edges, and missing an opportunity
:31:25. > :31:30.to get tough with energy companies. I think we are tough with energy
:31:30. > :31:34.companies. We have levied over �20 million of fines and the last year,
:31:34. > :31:38.and what we are trying to do is make sure that the market really
:31:38. > :31:42.does work for consumers in what has got to be the most radical reform
:31:42. > :31:45.of this market for a decade. So absolutely we are on the case, and
:31:45. > :31:55.we are making sure that consumers really get the benefit of this
:31:55. > :31:57.
:31:57. > :31:59.market. Ian, thank you very much. Yesterday you sent us loads of
:31:59. > :32:02.photos of confusing supermarket deals. Those that seem to offer
:32:02. > :32:05.price reductions, when you are actually paying the same. Well,
:32:05. > :32:08.we're also getting lots of examples of size reductions and you are
:32:08. > :32:11.still paying the same. Like this. Pampers. The New Baby jumbo pack
:32:12. > :32:17.did contain 80 nappies. But look at the latest version with 74 nappies.
:32:17. > :32:20.Not so jumbo now! Pampers admit the price has stayed the same. But they
:32:20. > :32:25.say they have upgraded the product. Rather than increase the cost for
:32:25. > :32:33.customers, they have decreased the quantity. They have also made this
:32:33. > :32:36.clear on the pack. Keep your Now, lots of you have also been in
:32:36. > :32:39.touch about our earlier story on loyalty schemes and how redeeming
:32:39. > :32:42.your reward points can sometimes end up costing you more. So, if you
:32:42. > :32:45.are thinking of joining a loyalty scheme, how do you work out which
:32:45. > :32:55.ones give the most money back? Today's expert, Dr John Haigh, has
:32:55. > :33:03.
:33:03. > :33:08.The simplest way to work out which loyalty scheme gives customers the
:33:08. > :33:13.best value is to make the most basic comparison possible. If I
:33:13. > :33:18.spend �100 in store, which Points scheme gives me back the most money
:33:18. > :33:25.to spend at that shop? Here I have got some of the most popular high
:33:25. > :33:32.street shops that have loyalty schemes. Tesco's with the Clubcard,
:33:32. > :33:37.Sainsbury's with the Nectar card, Superdrug and their beauty card,
:33:38. > :33:42.Boots and their advantage card and, I love a good boat, so let's add a
:33:42. > :33:49.Waterstone's. What has the best value? First, the number of points.
:33:49. > :33:57.If I spend �1 in each store, how many points do I get? With Tesco,
:33:57. > :34:04.it is one. But Sainsbury's, it is two. With Superdrug, it is one,
:34:04. > :34:09.with Bids, it is four and, with Waterstone's, it is three. Looking
:34:09. > :34:17.at the points alone, Boots, Waterstone's and Sainsbury's give
:34:17. > :34:22.the most points. Does that mean it is best in the shops? Not
:34:22. > :34:28.necessarily. In Tesco's, each point is worth 1p. In Sainsbury's, each
:34:28. > :34:35.point is worth half a penny so that is the same as Tesco's. In
:34:35. > :34:41.Superdrug, each point is also worth one penny, so that is the same. In
:34:42. > :34:48.Boots, each of these points is worth a penny so, in boots, you get
:34:48. > :34:53.4p. In Waterstone's, each of these points is also worth a penny so, in
:34:53. > :34:58.Waterstone's, for each pound you spend, you get 3p back to spend in
:34:58. > :35:03.store. Back to my original question. If you spend �100 in each store,
:35:03. > :35:09.how much to get back from the loyalty scheme? In Tesco,
:35:09. > :35:15.Sainsbury's and Superdrug, it is all the same - �1 for �100 spent.
:35:15. > :35:22.In Waterstone's, you get back �3 for each �100 spent. The Boots
:35:22. > :35:28.advantage card is best of all - you get �4 for at each �100 spent. Not
:35:28. > :35:31.bad at all. And now for a quick disclaimer. Of course you can spend
:35:31. > :35:40.your point on of other records. We have just looked at the basic
:35:40. > :35:48.monetary values. -- on the other rewards. There are other schemes
:35:48. > :35:51.available so apologies if we have not mentioned euros. -- yours. All
:35:51. > :35:58.the companies say their loyalty programmes offer a range of
:35:58. > :36:01.benefits. Meanwhile, if you want more information on that story, or
:36:01. > :36:05.to brush up on your own maths expertise, you can find out more on
:36:05. > :36:08.our website. The address: bbc.co.uk/watchdog. Now, back to
:36:08. > :36:10.the operation to stop the sale of illegal and potentially dangerous
:36:10. > :36:14.cosmetics in the Midlands. Trading Standards teams are preparing to
:36:15. > :36:24.test products they have already seized from one store. And now they
:36:25. > :36:26.
:36:26. > :36:31.are on their way to a second - The sale of illegal cosmetics
:36:31. > :36:37.carries stiff punishments, particularly for repeat offenders.
:36:37. > :36:42.Her are you in charge? Yes. I am from Birmingham City Council
:36:42. > :36:49.trading standards. This tour has already been warned for selling
:36:49. > :36:55.products breaching regulations. have just looked in the Cabinet and
:36:55. > :37:05.identified the cream which contains mercury. We will be seizing those.
:37:05. > :37:19.
:37:19. > :37:24.I'm going to check further. This That has got lead in. OK. That is
:37:24. > :37:29.shaving foam - it is not labelled. Another employee comes over to find
:37:29. > :37:34.her what the problem is. We have had been tested previously and each
:37:34. > :37:40.test we have conducted on these particular products, they have been
:37:40. > :37:45.found to contain mercury, which is in high quantities. That, within
:37:45. > :37:50.cosmetics, is banned. When it comes into the country, you do not check
:37:50. > :37:56.it? We do not check it, it is the responsibility of the person
:37:57. > :38:02.bringing them into the EC. He needs to be safe and tested in accordance
:38:02. > :38:10.with regulations. What is wrong with that, as a retailer? It has
:38:10. > :38:16.all the labels on end. It has not. It has external views. There is no
:38:16. > :38:21.name and address of who has exported it. As far as I am
:38:21. > :38:26.concerned, there is nothing wrong with selling that. Letting the
:38:26. > :38:31.stock into the country is the problem. That is what we are doing.
:38:31. > :38:41.We are trying to educate you. is the ultimate responsibility of
:38:41. > :38:41.
:38:41. > :38:48.whoever exports because emetics. Sharon brings inspection to a close.
:38:48. > :38:55.-- the cosmetics. When we have tested that previously, it is known
:38:55. > :39:01.to contain mercury. We have to look into the matter and Fidel why you
:39:01. > :39:06.have these products in your possession. -- and find out. When
:39:06. > :39:15.we have investigated the matter, a decision will be made on whether or
:39:15. > :39:21.not we take you to court. Back at base, Sharon hands over a selection
:39:21. > :39:25.of the seized cosmetic products to the lab team at Birmingham City
:39:25. > :39:35.Council. They begin with a skin lightening cream, suspected of
:39:35. > :39:45.containing mercury. This is now ready for diluting further so that
:39:45. > :39:47.
:39:47. > :39:53.we can measure the level of mercury We can see we have quite a strong
:39:53. > :39:59.response to Mercury said that sample definitely contains mercury.
:39:59. > :40:08.-- so that sample. Another skin cream also contained mercury but at
:40:08. > :40:17.the lower level. From the sample, we are just about to beat the
:40:17. > :40:22.second one. It has a strong response. -- read the second one.
:40:23. > :40:30.There is a lead in the sample. They rose 3% Mercury in that one. On
:40:30. > :40:35.this sample, we have found 1% lead. It turned out the bleaching cream
:40:35. > :40:41.did not contain any banned ingredients put it was incorrectly
:40:41. > :40:45.labelled. As a result of the tests, the store owners will be
:40:45. > :40:50.investigated as to how they have the products in their possession
:40:50. > :40:57.and a decision made as to whether or not they will be prosecuted. We
:40:57. > :41:01.have seen some of the results. Tell us the latest. All these samples
:41:01. > :41:07.were submitted to the laboratory and the results of that came back
:41:07. > :41:13.show us that none of us comply with labelling requirements for safe
:41:13. > :41:19.cosmetics. The cream here, there is no importer details on the product.
:41:19. > :41:23.There is no ingredient labelling. If someone was allergic to a
:41:23. > :41:29.particular ingredient, but would not know what was in the product
:41:29. > :41:35.and it may cause harm. There are no best before date. If this product
:41:35. > :41:41.was used after a shelf-life, it could cause harm. What about
:41:41. > :41:45.illegal substances like lead and mercury? Out of the projects
:41:45. > :41:51.submitted for testing, several products contain illegal substances.
:41:51. > :41:59.This hair tonic has been found to contain lead. We have three skin
:41:59. > :42:04.lightening creams. All those were found to contain mercury. What
:42:04. > :42:09.other dangers of hair dye containing lead or skin bleaching
:42:09. > :42:15.products containing mercury? They are harmful products. They can
:42:15. > :42:19.cause reactions such as skin irritation, vomiting, numbness to
:42:19. > :42:26.the hands and feet. Chronic poisoning can cause more severe
:42:26. > :42:32.reactions like kidney failure, brain damage and infertility.
:42:32. > :42:36.you. Now, Rani is here with some of your e-mails. Lots of you are
:42:36. > :42:42.unhappy with your loyalty schemes that end up costing you more. Jack
:42:42. > :42:51.says, how can there are two points add to the cost of your flight?
:42:51. > :42:56.That should be made very clear. One found that it is cheaper to book
:42:56. > :42:59.with a hotel direct in every case. And that's all we have time for
:42:59. > :43:02.today and this week. Coming up on Monday... New homes. Same old
:43:02. > :43:04.problems. The charge sheet against one of Britain's biggest house
:43:04. > :43:07.builders. Too old to travel. How some insurance companies refuse
:43:07. > :43:12.cover to pensioners going abroad. And who's watching the illegal-