Clean up your garage!

THE Consumer Minister Gareth Thomas on Monday, 5 January 2009 has launched a new drive to raise standards of car servicing and repairs. He wants garages to sign up to a Code of Practice. He today wrote to MPs asking them to contact garages in their constituencies and urge them to sign up to the Motor Industry Code of Practice for Servicing and Repair. He has also asked them to bring this Code to the attention of consumers in their area.

This Code was launched at the end of the summer and is designed to improve the standards of garages across the country. To date over 5,000 garages have already signed up to the Code with more joining every day, but more need to join to make this code a success for consumers and for business.

Gareth Thomas believes it is important that good garages across the country show their customers and prospective customers that they are prepared to commit to this industry standard by signing up to the code.

Gareth Thomas said:- "When you book your car in for a service or repair, it can be a lottery whether you get a good deal or are taken for a ride. This tough new scheme will drive out the cowboy garages that charge for unnecessary work or miss major faults through incompetence.

Many garages are already driving up standards by committing themselves to this Code. Regular inspections coupled with an enforcement regime will ensure consistency of service. A helpline for advice and a searchable guide will help people to get a good deal and help garages to raise consumer confidence in their services.

Garages that don't want to their business to get left behind should sign up to this Code as soon as possible."

People who want to find a good garage they can trust should call 0800 692 0825.

Mystery shopping surveys continue to confirm the sub-standard practices across the country revealed in BERR research and which estimated a cost to motorists of up to £4 billion a year. For example:-

* 43% of garages did not provide customers with an accurate quote prior to the service

* 40% of garages missed/did not replace at least one item on the service schedule. This was particularly so for female car owners - 58%

* 12% of independent garages carried out work that had not been agreed with customers prior to the work being undertaken

Advice to consumers:-

* Visit motorindustrycodes.co.uk to identify your nearest subscribing garage

* In the event of a dispute:-

1. Speak to the garage's dedicated customer service representative

2. If unable to resolve complaint, phone the free consumer advice line 0800 692 0825

3. Refer complex cases to the conciliation service

4. If conciliation does not resolve the complaint to the satisfaction of the consumer, subscribers will agree to independent arbitration, with a fixed fee for each party, if the consumer wishes.

* Feedback on garages visited via freepost reply forms available at each garage or online via motorindustrycodes.co.uk, allows garage customers the opportunity of appraising Motor Codes Ltd of the sector performance.

Opportunity for Sneak Preview of Long Awaited Dialysis Unit at Southport

PATIENTS, carers and their families will be offered the chance to see inside the new, state-of-the-art kidney dialysis unit at Southport, before it officially opens its doors for business.

The Southport NHS Dialysis Unit will be holding two open days on Monday 19 January and Tuesday, 20 January 2009, between 10am and 3pm - to give patients, as well as hospital staff and local people, the opportunity to see both the new unit, and some of the cutting edge technology responsible for ensuring patients receive the highest quality treatment available.

The unit, the subject of a long-running local fundraising campaign, is one of a number of either new or refurbished facilities, which have been built/adapted across Cheshire and Merseyside as part of the Government's independent sector procurement programme.

Similar units at Halton and Clatterbridge opened in 2008, and units at St Helens and Warrington will follow in 2009 and 2010. The overall scheme will result in an additional 41 dialysis stations across the region.

The Southport unit will be managed by Fresenius Medical Care, who operate the other units in the scheme, but patients will be clinically managed by consultant nephrologists from Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

All Fresenius units are similarly equipped with access controlled entrances to wards; comfortable patient waiting areas; consulting rooms; staff rooms and showers; bright and airy treatment areas, including isolation rooms, all fitted with televisions, including Freeview and radio, as well as individual washbasins, disposable curtains, sheets and pillowcases; plus state-of-the-art water treatment room, equipped with a highly sophisticated filter system to ensure high standards of water purity.

ACC LIVERPOOL CELEBRATES IT'S FIRST BIRTHDAY

ON 5 January 2009 is the first anniversary of the first event to be held at ACC Liverpool and the on site caterers Heathcotes ACC Liverpool, have presented ACC Liverpool Chief Executive with a special cake to mark the milestone.

Head chef Steve McCabe and sous chef Darren Edben presented the cake, specially made in the shape of the iconic riverside building, to ACC Liverpool chief executive Bob Prattey.

On the same day it was revealed that Liverpool's Arena & Convention Centre has contributed £200million to the local economy in its first year.

The venue, which comprises the 11,000 seater Echo Arena and the BT Convention Centre, has seen almost 700,000 people pass through its doors over the first 12 months.

Highlights of the 2008 programme included the European MTV awards in November 2008 - which was watched by an estimated global audience of 1.5 billion people; the BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards; La Machine and the Stirling Prize.

Bob Prattey, Chief Executive of ACC Liverpool, said:- “2008 was an incredible opening year and the challenge now is to ensure 2009 follows suit.

Both the Echo Arena and the BT Convention Centre have proven themselves as world-class venues, holding events such as the MTV awards and the La Machine performance art project.

We originally estimated that the venue would deliver £100million to the local economy - for everyone from hoteliers, restaurateurs and cab drivers - but we have more than doubled that.

This is testament to the tremendous effort from everyone involved in the project, who have made this first year such a huge success.”

Warren Bradley, leader of Liverpool City Council, added:- “For far too long Liverpool lacked a venue capable of staging world class events.

Since ACC Liverpool opened in January, the city has been spoilt for choice when it comes to high profile events.

I think the true measure of the venue’s success is that it is difficult to remember it not being there.

2008 has been a fabulous year and I have no doubt this will continue into 2009.”

Highlights of 2009’s programme, announced so far, include tours from Lionel Richie, Pink, Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton; League darts and boxing alongside alongside blue chip conferences including the Royal College of General Practitioners, The TUC, The NHS Confederation and The Association of British Neurologists.

DID YOU KNOW?

* The arena has 11,000 seats, putting it in the premier league of UK venues.

* The adjoining BT Convention Centre has 1,350 seats, a 3725 sq metre multi-purpose hall and 18 further meeting rooms offering complete flexibility. Total exhibition space is in excess of 7000 sq metres.

· ACC Liverpool has been designed to produce half the C02 emissions it would without any environmentally-friendly measures whilst using 20% less electricity.

· Rainwater is harvested, which is then used to flush toilets. Moreover, the rainwater accounts for about 40% of the water used for flushing toilets in the venue.

· Five 20-metre low noise wind turbines situated on the riverside of the venue generate around 10% of ACC Liverpool's base load electricity.

* In May 2008, ACC Liverpool won a Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Award with judges describing the building as a "significant contribution to the historic river frontage of the Mersey" and part of an "elegant and sophisticated composition".

* In February 2008, ACC Liverpool was named 'best UK venue' at Convex – the largest convention for event organisers. All the catering in the facility is by acclaimed chef Paul Heathcote’s company, Heathcotes Outside.

* The venue was designed by the award-winning architects Wilkinson Eyre.

* ACC Liverpool is the third biggest visitor attraction in Liverpool.