For Businesses

We can give expert advice and guidance to Dorset businesses on a wide range of trading standards matters. Contact us for help on our business advice line 01305 or 01202 224702.

Find links to information on licenses and street trading.

Businesses that supply products to consumers have a responsibility to ensure they are safe. We are responsible for enforcing safety regulations covering many different areas such as toys, bicycles, cosmetics, crash helmets, plugs and sockets, bunk beds and electrical goods.

We estimate that every week in the UK over a billion pounds of goods are weighed and measured at retail level alone.

We generally need to issue a licence when petroleum products are dispensed through a petrol pump into a vehicle or stored on domestic premises. The annual licence fee depends on the amount stored.

We believe that prevention is better than cure and work with a number of businesses that operate in Dorset and these trade assurance schemes. Please feel free to browse this section and contact us if you wish to receive more information.

The enforcement responsibilities for food are split between the County Council's Trading Standards Service, who deal with labelling and composition, and Environmental Health who deal with food hygiene and contamination.

We have a responsibility to enforce the laws which cover the sale of certain goods to people who are too young to buy them.