Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions his Department in cooperation with other departments has had with private sector organisations on the standardisation of their bereavement notification processes, in order to reduce the level of distress caused to bereaved families.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Internal policies relating to bereavement are a matter for individual businesses, but we expect companies to treat consumers with compassion in such circumstances, with many organisations having specialist bereavement advisors to support consumers during such times.
Under consumer legislation, businesses are required to carry out their services with reasonable care and skill, and within a reasonable time. Businesses in regulated sectors may have additional obligations, such as financial organisations which are bound by the Consumer Duty.
My department has not had any recent discussions with organisations about improving bereavement processes. However, we do engage with businesses more generally on consumer protection matters.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department assessed the adequacy of existing consumer protection regulations in ensuring that companies treat bereaved customers with appropriate sensitivity and consistency.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Internal policies relating to bereavement are a matter for individual businesses, but we expect companies to treat consumers with compassion in such circumstances, with many organisations having specialist bereavement advisors to support consumers during such times.
Under consumer legislation, businesses are required to carry out their services with reasonable care and skill, and within a reasonable time. Businesses in regulated sectors may have additional obligations, such as financial organisations which are bound by the Consumer Duty.
My department has not had any recent discussions with organisations about improving bereavement processes. However, we do engage with businesses more generally on consumer protection matters.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has had any recent discussions with industry bodies representing (a) banks, (b) insurers, and (c) utility companies on improving bereavement processes for customers.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Internal policies relating to bereavement are a matter for individual businesses, but we expect companies to treat consumers with compassion in such circumstances, with many organisations having specialist bereavement advisors to support consumers during such times.
Under consumer legislation, businesses are required to carry out their services with reasonable care and skill, and within a reasonable time. Businesses in regulated sectors may have additional obligations, such as financial organisations which are bound by the Consumer Duty.
My department has not had any recent discussions with organisations about improving bereavement processes. However, we do engage with businesses more generally on consumer protection matters.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions she has had with OFCOM on levels of compliance of delivery companies with consumer rights legislation.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
I have recently met with Ofcom to discuss a range of issues. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, the seller is responsible for the delivery of goods bought online until they are in the consumer's physical possession and is thus responsible if anything goes wrong with the consumer's parcel, including goods delivered damaged or lost in transit.
Ofcom requires that all operators have a straightforward, accessible, and affordable complaints process.
Asked by: Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat - South Devon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of requiring Companies House to carry out checks on the validity of companies addresses when they first register.
Answered by Justin Madders
The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 introduced greater powers to remove false and misappropriated company addresses from the register and more stringent requirements around what constitutes an appropriate address.
It will also introduce compulsory identify verification for company officers. The automated nature of these processes means that they can manage a large amount of data at speed. Verifying an address and a company's link to it, however, would rely on different evidence, requiring much more manual processing. Given Companies House registers over 800,000 companies per year, the vast majority of which are entirely legitimate, the resource demands are likely to be disproportionate and such checks are not currently part of government plans.