Watchdog warning over spray foam insulation as show celebrates 40th year
Watchdog warning over spray foam insulation as show celebrates 40th year
The consumer rights programme is currently fronted by Allwright and Nikki Fox, who have marked the milestone by discussing some of its success stories, which include undercover investigations and policy changes.
Watchdog's Matt Allwright has found himself in some sticky situations over the years.
(Image: BBC )
Homeowners should be wary of companies trying to dishonestly sell spray foam insulation, BBC Watchdog presenter Matt Allwright has warned as the show celebrates its 4Oth year.
The consumer rights programme is currently fronted by Allwright and Nikki Fox, who have marked the milestone by discussing some of its success stories, which include undercover investigations and policy changes.
The pair said inflated ticket prices and mis-billing by energy companies were some of the biggest cases they had covered, and the show has seen "tens of thousands of pounds" returned to customers.
"I think being part of that process is a real privilege, and those sorts of roles don't come along very often. I really cherish it. I love it," Allwright said.
Asked about the most shocking story he had covered recently, Allwright said it was the misselling of spray foam.
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"Most homes don't need spray foam insulation," he said. "You can use fibreglass matting, like most of us have in a loft.
"The problem with it is that it can also cause damage to a home in certain circumstances, and as a result, a lot of mortgage lenders aren't happy about lending on a home that's got it. It's also very difficult to remove.
"You've got to make that sort of thing really clear – if you're selling something that costs thousands of pounds and would cost thousands of pounds to remove and could therefore stop the sale of your home at the point where you need it."
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Watchdog has been fronted by various presenters since it first aired on BBC One in 1985, perhaps most memorably by Anne Robinson and Nick Frost.
In 2020, the BBC announced it would cease to be broadcast as a standalone programme, and would be shown as a feature within The One Show.
Fox and Allwright discuss their memories of the show during a special programme, Watchdog At 40, which will air on The One Show at 7pm on Wednesday on BBC One.
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But the young global star is baffled by her fame admitting 'it's insane' to see audiences often crying at her shows. The Californian, who will get the chance to impress millions of older music fans on the BBC this weekend, has resonated with fans mainly thanks to her astonishing ability to serve up raw records, emotionally outlining heartbreak, love and youth angst. But while the tracks are 'deeply personal' and reflect many life experiences, she refuses to ever confirm names of the subjects of those hits. Olivia had a knack for songwriting while she starred in series Bizaardvark (2016–2019) and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. However the chart star is keen to shut down talk she was a manufactured fame hungry child star pushed by parents. Olivia admits playing at Glastonbury, like her experiences on her currents GUTS world tour, makes her more connected to her art and audiences. 'It's incredibly powerful. I experience some of that out there and going on tour every night. 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'I've been writing songs since I could talk. I've written so many songs in my life, written so many bad songs, got a lot of practice. But it's this weird thing - I really believe that really good songs kind of don't come from you - they kind of come through you. It's kind of like something else. It's like a magical thing and sometimes you write a song and you're like, wow, I don't even know how that came to be, just kind of this beautiful flow. So I credit a lot of my songs to that sort of magic. 'I was probably 12 or 13 when I started really playing stuff on the piano. I started learning chords and really taking songwriting seriously and yeah, it's just been such a joy since then. I feel like I learned so much about songwriting every day. Even now I just feel like there's so much that I don't know and so much that I'm curious about. So it's a lifelong journey.' 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Olivia remains humbled by her meteoric rise especially how her debut Drivers License became a generational anthem and earned the Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance at the 2022 Awards. 'That was such a huge moment for me and something that I'll remember when I'm 85 and I love that song so much. Just for me, I wrote that song and loved it because it just so acutely expressed what I was going through at the time. The fact that it resonated in the way that it did is just so meaningful. I owe so much to that song and it opened so many doors for me.' Olivia has managed to maintain a low profile despite her global success. 'It's always a double-edged sword. It's true. Life has gotten difficult in some ways, but easier than others, and I just really happy to be where I am and have all of these opportunities. Yeah, it's a really interesting thing. I think that I also sort of got a soft introduction to it because of my childhood acting. 'I was maybe a little more prepared. 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