ABSTRACT
[6.01] This chapter is concerned with the use of administrative regulation to attain consumer protection. Even assuming all the ordinary consumer protection rules are enforced, 2 there are always likely to be situations where a trader may make a net profit by ignoring the rules and paying any fine or damages. Of course, there is a general power for the Attorney-General to seek an injunction to restrain persistent breaches of commercial law; 3 Pt 8 of the EA grants the OFT a similar power in respect of some breaches of both criminal and civil law (see paras 6.06–8 ); and the subsequent proliferation of ombudsmen to oversee various parts of commerce is intended to meet similar needs (see para 3.25 ). However, at best such proceedings are likely to remain a stable-bolting exercise, making no attempt to weed out the unscrupulous trader before he harms consumers. By contrast, 4 the technique of licensing has the advantage that it can be set up so that such traders may be precluded from lawfully trading before consumers can be harmed (see para 6.02 ). As always, there is the dilemma that too Draconian controls may simply divert consumer demand into the arms of illegal traders (see para 6.20 ).
