Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what estimate he has made of the annual cost to consumers of rogue traders operating in the home improvements and fitted interiors sector.

The 2024 Consumer Detriment Survey suggests £10.3bn of net monetised consumer detriment within the Home Improvement sector.

Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, services must be performed with reasonable care and skill, with remedies where these standards are not met. We have supported the Furniture and Home Improvement Ombudsman’s new Approved Code, requiring participating businesses to meet robust standards of workmanship, transparency and dispute resolution.

The Government is working with Trader Recommendation Platforms to strengthen trader verification, monitoring and complaints handling, while developing longer-term reforms to improve consumer advice, redress and the ability of Trading Standards to tackle rogue operators.