What is the Code of Practice?
The British Association of Removers Code of Practice is the only code in the moving industry that’s approved and monitored by the
Office of Fair Trading under its Consumer Codes Approval Scheme.
All BAR members abide by the Code that dictates the standard of service you will receive, the quality of the materials used, the standards of vehicles and warehouses, staff training requirements and what will happen if something goes wrong. Most importantly the Code requires BAR moving companies to deal with you in a courteous and sympathetic way at all times.
Every BAR member makes the following key commitments:
We promise to act fairly and reasonably with you and uphold all the standards contained in the Code. Our key commitments are:
To make sure that our advertising and promotional literature is clear and not misleading.
To provide you with a clear description, price and timetable for the work carried out.
To offer insurance or other protection options.
To explain clearly our liability for loss or damage, the time limit for making claims, and cancellation/postponement rights and charges.
To provide staff who are courteous, competent, and committed to providing a high standard of service.
To deal quickly and sympathetically with things that go wrong.
To publicise this Code, have copies freely available and make sure our staff are trained to put it into practice.
Financial Protection
The Code says that if your BAR remover cancels a removal more than 10 days before the agreed date for the work it must pay you back everything you paid to them. If it cancels less than 10 days before the agreed date it must pay you 150% of the monies paid. This means that you can be confident that your BAR remover will arrive to do the work on the agreed date.
If your BAR member is not able to do the work on the agreed day or pay the 150% refund, the BAR Pre-payment Protection Scheme will be speedily activated to have the work completed by another member or provide you with a full refund.
If something goes wrong
If you have a complaint about the service your BAR member will try to resolve it fairly, quickly and efficiently. If it can’t settle your complaint to your satisfaction you may refer it to the BAR’s FREE Conciliation Service on consumer.affairs@bar.co.uk Tel: 01923 699486
If you are still not satisfied a low-cost, independent arbitration scheme is available operated by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.
OFT Monitoring
The Office of Fair Trading monitors the performance of all BAR members, to make sure that they are operating within the BAR Code of Practice and that the Code is working properly in the customers’ interests. You can help by completing the customer satisfaction survey your BAR remover will give you.