THE Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) is joining hands with the management of Sim Lim Square to clean up the mall's reputation for fleecing its customers, making misleading claims and selling defective goods.

Talks are on to launch the CaseTrust accreditation scheme for the mall's 500 shops, which mostly sell technology gadgets.

For a start, the scheme will aim to rope in up to a quarter of the merchants and accredit the trustworthy ones among them.

The accreditation scheme, administered by Case, will also be launched for vendors in two other industries that attract the most complaints - the motoring industry, as well as the beauty and spa industry.

Case president Yeo Guat Kwang, who was at the NTUC Centre in Marina Boulevard yesterday for a family-centred event to mark World Consumer Rights Day, also announced that the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act would have a wider reach from the middle of next month.

Products sold by the financial industry and goods presented to consumers in free-trial promotions will be added to the list of goods and services against which they can file complaints and seek redress.

Another change to the Act was with regard to the maximum amount of claims consumers may seek, which will go up from $20,000 to $30,000.

To launch CaseTrust in an industry, Case examines its trading practices and consumer policies, and sets up dispute- resolution mechanisms. If a business meets the set standards, it will be given the CaseTrust accreditation.

Businesses that are accredited wear their trustworthiness with a decal that is displayed on their premises.

Sim Lim's advertising and promotions manager Sean Chia said: 'We want to give customers more confidence to shop at Sim Lim Square.'

Read the full story in today's edition of The Straits Times.