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Sara Cox launches search for Tesco Mum of the Year 2012

By Spark and Fuse on August 17, 2011

 

Sara Cox and her mum at launch of Tesco Mum of the Year 2012

Sara Cox and her mum at Waldorf Hilton, London

Sara Cox, radio DJ and mum-of-three, is the official ambassador for Tesco Mum of the Year 2012 and is calling for the public to nominate any mums they know who have done something amazing to help the lives of others.

At the launch held at the Waldorf Hilton, Sara Cox commented: “I’m really excited to be part of the Tesco Mum of the Year Awards. I attended the 2011 Award, earlier this year, and was moved to tears by the stories of the winning mums.

It’s so important to celebrate our mums and make a fuss of them because they really deserve it – I certainly couldn’t have got to where I am today without my own wonderful and supportive mum. There are millions of mums out there doing all these extraordinary things, struggling against the odds and facing challenges. If you know a mum who really deserves to be shown just how special she is, get nominating!”

The Tesco Mum of the Year Awards 2012 will be the seventh year of the Awards and are set to be the biggest and best yet. Eight inspirational mums will be honoured at the glittering, star-studded event, where they will walk the red carpet, enjoy a three-course lunch and watch performances from some of the UK’s top music acts, before being presented with their Award.

Maureen Rice, Editorial Director of Tesco magazine, said: “We are very proud that 2012 will be the seventh year of the Tesco Mum of the Year Awards. During that time, we’ve heard so many incredible stories and met so many inspirational women. This is our chance to celebrate these unsung heroes, who, often despite their own difficult circumstances, have truly gone above and beyond to help others and make a difference.”

If you know an amazing mum who could be a Tesco Mum of the Year, find out how to nominate her at www.tescomagazine.com. Nominations close on 23rd September 2011.

Tesco Mum of the Year 2012

By Spark and Fuse on August 9, 2011

Tesco Mum of the Year logo

Is your mum amazing? Do you know an extraordinary mum who has made a difference to the lives of everyone around them? Now’s your chance to have her achievements recognised and honoured by entering her into Tesco Mum of the Year 2012. The winning mums will be brought to London early next year for a glittering awards ceremony. As event organisers for the awards, meeting the winning mums is truly a perk of job! Click here for more information on how to enter.  Good Luck!

Prize winner or prize draw hoax?

By Spark and Fuse on August 3, 2011

Every month we fulfil stacks of prize draws – we send winners on fabulous holidays, arrange delivery of home entertainment systems, package up kids toys and occasionally even notify winners of big cash wins. But for every great winning whoop of joy, we are considered suspiciously by others who think their prize notification is a hoax.

The CAP code is very clear ‘promoters must not claim that consumers have won a prize if they have not’ and fake prize draw scams in the UK are illegal. However, according to consumer watchdog Which? prize draw scams are the second most common scams in the UK. So how do you know if you really are a winner?

Firstly, did you enter the prize draw or competition? If not, then quite simply you cannot possibly be a winner. We can prove that all our prize winners entered a prize draw – we’ll have their entry postcard, or SMS, phone and online records mean we have exact date and time of entry. If you receive a letter saying you’ve won a prize draw by a company claiming you’ve been ‘specially selected’ to win a prize, put it in the bin. Immediately.

Are you being asked to pay a fee to claim your prize? We never, ever, EVER, ask our prize winners to part with money in order to claim their prize and there’s no such thing as a required administrative fee either. You might have to pay for an element not included in the prize itself, such as train fare to a hotel, but this will be stipluted in the terms and conditions. But you should never pay to actually claim a prize. In fact, it’s a criminal offence to say that someone’s won a prize and then ask them to pay money to receive it. It comes with a prison sentence of about two years.

Do you need to call a premium rate phone number to claim this prize? Pretty much as above. When we notify winners we generally send a letter that contains all the prize details plus we provide our office phone number and email address as a point of contact. You will never have to call an expensive phone number to speak to a prize supplier or their administrator.

Have you been asked to provide details of your bank account? We once had the joyous task of awarding a prize winner £10,000. We gave her the choice, a cheque or direct money transfer. She chose a cheque. There is never a need to give your bank account details to claim a prize. Especially if you haven’t even won money.

Oh, and finally, if you get an email from someone overseas claiming you’ve won millions of dollars in a lottery, you know where to file it…

If you receive a prize notification and you think it’s a bit iffy, then get in touch with the Advertising Standards Authority in the first instance.