Month: February 2015

(Hradec Králové, February 25, 2015) Common inspection action of the Czech Trade Inspection Authority, Regional Veterinary Administration (RVA) and Regional Hygiene Station (RHS) was carried out on Friday, February 20, 2015, in Špindlerův Mlýn, Jánské Lázně, Černý Důl and Pec pod Sněžkou. The aim of the action was to inspect public alimentation during the winter touristic season in areas with increased tourism. In total 20 inspections were carried out and infringements were discovered in 16 cases, i.e. 80% of inspected subjects. The press releas...

(Continuous report of 4th quarter of 2014)(Prague, February 24, 2015) Inspection action of last quarter of 2014 was aimed at sale of goods and provision of services especially in places that are frequently visited during winter season. Besides alimentation facilities, CTIA inspectors monitor workplaces offering accommodation, rentals of sport equipment and providers of other services in mountain resorts. With regard to the fact that winter sports didn’t have any good conditions, a number of ski resorts didn’t provide full services and hence ran...

(Monitoring of fuel quality in January 2015)(Prague, February 19, 2015) From the start of January 2015, monitoring of fuel quality has continued at filling stations on the whole territory of the Czech Republic, including subsequent inspection sampling. Only three diesel fuel samples out of all 235 collected fuel samples failed, namely concerning flash point. This quality parameter was 10°C lower than stipulated in the applicable technical standard (which is 53°C). We speak about so called negligence deviation that suggests that fuel was contami...

(Monitoring of fuel quality in 2014)(Prague, February 16, 2015) In 2014, the Czech Trade Inspection Authority collected in total 2,663 samples of petrol, diesel, diesel fuel blend, LPG, CNG, and Ethanol E85, including 81 fuel samples that failed applicable technical standards. During the year, the authority closely cooperated with bodies of Customs Administration, General Financial Directorate, and the Police of the Czech Republic that were also informed about detected shortcomings concerning quality of sold fuels and with who the CTIA coordina...

(Final report of 2014)(Prague, February 9, 2015) Services provided by tour operators and travel agents were continuously checked by the Czech Trade Inspection Authority during the whole year. As inspection results showed, most tour operators managed to comply with requirements of the new Civil Code, but some subjects offering services in the field of tourism still have difficulties to comply with obligations determined by the Act on Consumer Protection, especially information obligations – half of detected breaches related to rights concerning ...

(Prague, February 6, 2015) The Czech Trade Inspection Authority collected a diesel fuel sample which contained high amount of water at the Agip filling station at the V Korytech Street in Prague on February 4. CTIA reports on this matter because it is in consumers’ legitimate interest. The limit of water was exceeded fifty times (permitted maximum is 260 mg/kg, but the sample contained 12.470 mg/kg). The Czech Trade Inspection Authority hasn’t detected such high amount of water in any collected sample since 2001 when monitoring of fuels quality...

(Final report of 2014)(Prague, February 5, 2015) The Czech Trade Inspection Authority permanently monitors vendors’ practices related to special offers and seasonal clearance sales. Inspection results show that rate of detected shortcomings is still high – almost 40% of sellers don’t inform truthfully about prices after discount, bill discounts incorrectly or offer goods that is not marked properly. In 2014, 933 fines amounting in total to more than 15 million CZK were lawfully imposed for detected breaches. “Most frequent findings concerned se...

(Final report of the project for 2014)(Prague, January 30, 2015) Surveillance project of the Czech Trade Inspection Authority was focused on inspection of equipment containing fluorinated greenhouse gases used as refrigerants. Inspectors checked whether small air condition units offered to consumers are marked in compliance with the Act on substances that deplete the ozone layer and on fluorinated greenhouse gases. They discovered that 25 of 86 inspected sellers offered the above mentioned products without required extent or form of marking pur...

(Final report of 2014)(Prague, January 29, 2015) In 2014, the public was permanently interested in activities of the Czech Trade Inspection Authority especially regarding presentation sales events. One of the reasons was the amendment of the Act on Consumer Protection that became effective on January 2014 determining new obligations to organizers of sales presentation events concerning reporting about events to the surveillance authority and information towards consumers. In total 66 organizers reported 27,600 presentation sales events during t...