What Is a Consumer Code?

Where the scheme came from

The Approved Code Scheme was established by the Office of Fair Trading in 2001 and is now overseen by the Consumer Codes Approval Board, an independent not-for-profit body. Standards are set and approved through Trading Standards, and member businesses are audited by whoever sponsors that particular code.

As of October 2025 there were 18 code sponsors, more than 40 approved codes, over 45,000 member businesses, and £155bn of consumer spending covered.

What it isn't

It isn't a directory. Checkatrade, MyBuilder and similar platforms sell leads. A code doesn't send you work; it changes how a customer judges you when you're already in front of them.

It isn't a review platform. Reviews are consumer opinion. A code is an audited standard. The difference matters more every year, for reasons covered on the DMCC page.

It isn't something you buy. You apply, you're assessed, and you're audited afterwards. That's the whole point, a mark anyone could purchase would tell a customer nothing.

What you're actually committing to

Broadly, an approved code covers:

• Pre-contract information, what the customer must be told before they commit
• Sales and marketing standards, honest claims, no pressure selling
• Delivery and completion, how work is carried out and handed over
• Payment protection, protecting customers' money, deposits and pre-payments
• Complaints handling, how you deal with problems yourself
• Independent redress, where it goes if you can't resolve it

That last one is not optional. Alternative dispute resolution is a mandatory requirement of the Approved Code Scheme, and determinations bind the member business.

Why a trade would take that on

Because the commitment is the asset. Anything a business can obtain without being assessed, a logo, an advert, a five-star profile, tells a customer nothing about whether the business is any good.

An audited standard does. It travels onto a doorstep, into a quote pack, onto a van, into a tender submission and into a retailer's due-diligence file. One thing that answers the consumer's question, the buyer's question and the regulator's question at once.

The logo point

It is a criminal offence for a business that isn't a member to claim membership or display the Approved Code logo.

Worth knowing in both directions. It's why the mark can't be faked, and it's why you must not use it until your membership is confirmed.