Ask Has the company or its manufacturer recently been in administration and how old is the actual manufacturer from the formation of the new company.
Many spa manufacturers have gone out of business then the name has been used by the new company owners, this has caused many British spa owners to be left without warranty cover or service in the past.
Ask Are they selling all new 2010 models or do you feel you are being pushed towards what they want to sell you, that could be old stock.
Were they at the show last year, were they selling the same make?
Is the spa self cleaning and self purifying can you leave it when you go on holiday?
Ask What is the difference in price between the price you would pay in America, Canada (or China) for this hot tub and what they are selling it for here?
This is important as some companies claim a quite ordinary spa is usually £17,000, but the “show” price is £10,000 when in fact the shop price in Canada is only £5,000.
Ask Have you ever been exposed for overcharging or sharp practice on a TV programme? a company has been featured on watchdog and one company was shown to discount prices by £7,000, and still ask nearly twice its North American price.
Ask How long have you been selling this brand does your company provide the service and warranty cover for the products you are selling.
Ask Does the salesperson work for the company are they just a commission sales person selling one make today, and another make tomorrow, (or sheds, double glazing etc) this means they may not be knowledgeable on the product or say anything to sell.
Ask Who is your contract of sale with, have you the full names of the sales person, is he or she from overseas and is the sales person actually allowed to sell in Britain. does his name go on the contract of sale.
Where you selling the same brand at the show last year, if not why have you changed
Ask Real name of the wood used on the spa cabinet. Many companies con buyers with cheap wood cabinets that look good at shows but need yearly treatment and do not stand up to damp wet British winters. They say their cabinets are Cedar when in fact they are just soft wood, Thuja plicata, has the common name of Western Redwood Cedar in Canada for marketing purposes but are not Cedar (Cedrus) or Redwood and are the Canadian equivalent of Leylandi.
What to watch out for at shows
Companies selling one band on one stand at a high price and then selling another brand on another stand at a lower price, while pretending they are not the same company or from the same manufacturer
Salespeople reluctant to give their full or real names or put this down on a contract as they do not want their true earnings traced for tax, ask for a card and keep it.