Plain English Campaign

Plain English Campaign are proud to announce that uSwitch.com is the first comparison website to achieve our Internet Crystal Mark. The Internet Crystal Mark is recognised worldwide as a standard that a website has clear language, and is accessible and easy to use.

Plain English Campaign have been fighting for over 30 years against the use of unnecessary jargon and gobbledygook in communications. With a growing trend for public information to be presented through globally accessible online services, using clear language becomes even more important.

‘Self-help’ and ‘do-it-yourself’ kits can be ideal, particularly in times when money is tight. But any kit is only effective if the result is reliable.

The recent Which? comparison of self-test kits demonstrates the varying quality and clarity of instructions and information. Without access to a health-care professional, the user is left with only the information in front of them. The experts who provided feedback on the kits said that the main problems lay with missing and unclear information. What isn’t said is often as important as what is said. And what is said needs to be clear and understandable the first time it is read.

Plain English Campaign welcomes a rare opportunity to applaud the motoring industry today when Halfords Autocentres launch their plain English ‘Glossary of garage speak'. This is the first guide of its kind in the motor industry to receive a Crystal Mark from Plain English Campaign.

The guide is a direct result of research carried out for the independent garage network. The research showed a high level of confusion linked to mechanical jargon and highlighted the need for simple and unpatronising language when dealing with motorists.