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ive seen similar gary. To my mind they are either con merchants or very stupid as to how to advertise themselves. either way unless they are selling very long barge poles, I wouldn't go near them
However, I think in this case and if it worried me that much, I would find out the guy's name and contact BALI to ease my mind.
Thermo said:
Unless the public are made aware that many of the "trust me" signs are fake, or even if genuine only mean someone's paid a fee for them, they will get conned sometimes.
Approved, Trusted, Rated, Checked, they carry no more guarantee about the company than all the other signs people have used over the years, such as Motorway Maintenance, Local Authority Approved or £5 million insurance carried!
The one I love now is "all waste is recycled". I immediately read that as " dropped in a layby after dark".
The trouble is that these schemes can't, and never will, police themselves. What action can you take against a trader who's not a member of your scheme, even if you caught them using the signs?
I currently run two transit pick ups and a 7.5 ton tipper, we do not display any sign writing company names or phone numbers. Although Im all to well aware we are missing out on free advertising we have run this way for quite a number of years.
This came about initially because we used to carry out sub contract work for a large national landscape contractor and therefore we couldnt use vehicles liveried in our own company name.
To be honest its something i have been meaning to address but like everything else whilst your busy it does get put on the back burner.
I think a couple of replies have missed my point. my comments were not aimed at anyone who chooses not to get their van sign written. Some traders have good reason not to want or need to get them signwritten.The use gary referring to is normally associated with dishonest users who are trying to look legitimate to unsuspecting clients, when they call unannounced and tell you they've noticed you need some work doing.
Otherwise what is the point of displaying a trade or checkatrade sticker on a plain van. a customer sees you as you're driving along. they don't know who you are or what you do, so how do they make contact with you, even if they look up on a trade website. Its akin to have your signwritten with "ive got a website and a telephone, but im not telling you what I do or who I am" and bearing in mind how much a trader will pay for accreditation with one of those trade bodies etc, I think it is extremely unlikely that they will drive a vehicle around in that state, in which case they are likely to be in the category of the first paragraph above
hope that clarifies my point!
paul with regards your point I know checkatrade do follow up anyone using their logo falsely and have taken legal action before, don't know about any of the trade bodies such as bali
Is that not the point/issue ? - he is not easily identifiable. If he's 'proud' enough to display BALI/C-a-T stickers one would think he'd want to associate his business with it - else why bother ?
I don't think there's any implied criticism of 'quality' contractors who use unmarked vans...they would not be displaying just trade organisations logos?
Colin Hunt said:
If a contractor is trade association member then they have to give everyone the opportunity to independently verify their membership. Simply having a badge is not necessarily proof of membership.
Some people do try to deceive, see this previous thread: http://www.landscapejuicenetwork.com/forum/topics/rogue-traders-beware
I do not sign write my van, or carry any stickers etc but I dont think having an unmarked van makes carrying the stickers innapropriate or unpro;
I dont makr my vans as I dont want ot be tailed by gypsies etc who are very pleased to liberate you of the burdens of ownership - having been on the receiving end of this twice, I would rather not signpost whats in my van while im round a back garden with ear defenders on out of hearing distance!
To answer your question directly, Gary RK, being similarly disturbed as yourself by such a sight I would take a quick snap of the offending vehicle, maybe two or three snaps if time allowed, trying to get the number plate and sign into the same shot at least once.
Next step would be to try the DVLA site to see what info I cold glean on the vehicle ownership.
Finally I'd be on to BALI and/or CaT with the evidence and asking to keep me informed regarding the action they have taken.
Strange that a number of responses have centred on the issue of unmarked vehicles rather than the implicit deception of having trade organisations logos displayed on an unmarked vehicle whose 'authenticity' to carry those logos can not be verified. For the record, I have not implied having an unmarked van is unprofessional.
...Or have I misunderstood ?
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