NICEIC is set to name and shame rogue electricians caught incorrectly using its logo. The UK’s leading electrical accreditation body has recorded a marked increase in the number of traders fraudulently posing as being NICEIC registered. Anyone caught misusing the logo will now be named on the NICEIC website’s Wall of Shame.
“We take misuse of our logo very seriously and feel this hardline approach is needed to uphold the NICEIC reputation,” said NICEIC’s Chief Operating Officer, Emma McCarthy. “NICEIC is synonymous with quality and a job well done. We cannot have rogue traders going around posing as NICEIC registered when, in fact, the quality of their work has never been approved by our organisation. Specifiers need assurances that when they appoint a registered contractor that is exactly what they are getting.”
Offending companies will continue to be reported to Trading Standards and could face a heavy fine or sentencing. Shaun McKever, trading as S&M Electrical Contractors in Milton Keynes, was recently handed a 12 month Community Order with 150 hours of unpaid work after he was caught using the NICEIC logo on business cards and a website listing.
The current economic climate means more and more untrustworthy traders misuse the logo as a way of winning work. NICEIC has received 185 reports in 2010, whilst in 2008 and 2009 the figures were 156 and 154 respectively.
“The NICEIC logo is recognised by members of the public as a mark of excellence and used by contractors as a way to promote the quality of their work. I recommend anyone who is suspicious of a contractor to check the NICEIC website at www.niceic.com which contains a full list of all those approved contractors registered with NICEIC.”