CASE President Visits Eight Design, Highlights the Importance of CaseTrust Accreditation Scheme in Counteracting Renovation Scams

SINGAPORE - Media OutReach - 11 November 2021 - Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) President Melvin Yong paid Eight Design a visit in their West Tradehub Showroom. Eight Design was mentioned specifically by Yong in a post he made on Facebook, reiterating the value and significance of local renovation contractors being able to secure a CaseTrust accreditation, a step that is beneficial to both the client and the service-provider to counteract the renovation scams occurring in the industry. Consumers have been complaining about contractors who underdeliver or leave completely during a project. It was even recorded that the renovation sector has received 621 complaints in the first half of 2021 alone, almost double than last year's numbers. Because of the mishaps caused by COVID-19, businesses in the industry were greatly affected. Yong's intention in his visit was to understand better the measures being done by renovation companies in providing assurance to their clients.

According to Melvin Yong, in today's time, consumers are likely to spend more in the renovation of their new homes—with most even paying larger sums of deposits upfront to the contracting party they are engaging with. As compared to how consumers behaved 10 years ago, this recent practice in the industry is becoming a cause for concern. He stresses that when people pay huge deposit amounts ahead of time, it will be challenging to seek for recourse in case there are difficulties that arise during the entirety of the project. To avoid this, Singapore Renovation Contractors and Material Suppliers Association (RCMA) joined forces with CASE to create a CaseTrust-RCMA Joint Accreditation Scheme through a Memorandum of Understanding.

CaseTrust is the accreditation arm of CASE; it is also Singapore's de facto standard that reliable companies refer to and follow when offering and executing services that are only truthful and ethical. Melvin Yong expressed his high spirits in Eight Design. The company has been CaseTrust accredited since 2016 and they find the policies and practices helpful in guiding the company's internal operations and processes, benefiting the company and the customers, as well as in setting the expectations of home renovation projects to minimize disputes.

Accredited businesses like Eight Design - Top Residential & Commercial IDs help consumers find legitimate contractors that provide fair trading and transparency. Only those that are listed in RCMA are eligible to obtain the joint accreditation. Through this course of action, the consumers' deposit payments are protected by a deposit performance bond—effectively safeguarding it from closure, potential liquidation, and other unfavorable incidents.

The CASE president himself highlighted the benefits that consumers will get from engaging with an accredited business:

1.  The contractor will be carrying out consumer friendly-policies and good business practices.

2.  The consumers' deposits will be protected through the aforementioned deposit performance bond.

3.  The contractor will be committed in resolving and minimizing disputes through a peaceful and professional mediation.

4.  A CaseTrust Standard Renovation Contract will be adopted by the accredited contractor to ensure cost transparency and accountability for every listed deliverables in the renovation project.

According to The Straits Times, home renovation costs have increased by 10 to 20% industry-wide. With this inevitable upsurge, the demands of the modern consumers are also increasing. To bridge this gap, businesses should ensure fair trading while consumers do their due diligence. To check for a renovation company like Eight Design's accreditation, one can easily navigate through CaseTrust's web listing or view the CaseTrust-RCMA's logo that businesses display in their shop fronts and marketing materials as an outward sign of commitment.

About Eight Design Pte Ltd

Eight Design has been offering exceptional services as an interior and renovation contractor in Singapore for more than 15 years, and has a wealth of knowledge to provide comprehensive solutions in a variety of contexts. From design and decoration to carpentry and renovation, we can deliver the best possible result for your commercial or domestic project. Our passionate team of creative designers will always put your needs first and will take care of you from start to finish including all planning, management and construction processes. We hold ourselves to the highest standards across the board and maintain these expectations of ourselves through thorough methods of quality control and our very own team of skilful carpenters. To speak with the best renovation contractor available, visit eightdesign.com.sg and find out what we can help you achieve.

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