Bogus tradesman – advice from Community Police.

The following advice about door to door sales and bogus tradesmen has been sent to the local Homewatch by the Community Police.

Buying on your doorstep can be convenient. But a salesman using clever tactics can pressurise you into buying something you don't want or something that is poor value for money.

Door-to-door frauds can take many forms such as:-

• Pressure selling
• Unfair contracts
• Overpriced or substandard home maintenance or improvements
• Phoney consumer surveys
• Bogus charity collections.

How do these types of fraud affect me?

• Chances of receiving a refund may be limited if you fail to cancel the contract inside any cooling off period.
• You may be marked as an easy target for future sales if your name ends up on a list of willing buyers.
• Bogus salespeople will provide false identity or contact information, making it impossible for you to identify or contact them. If you have paid them in advance, you will not get any money back.
• Providing someone with your bank or personal details could risk identity fraud.
• Damaged credit rating, continued correspondence over a prolonged period to repair the damage, and the emotional distress and anxiety identity theft can cause.
• You risk opening your door to a burglar or someone intent on burglary.

What should I do?

• Check the seller's identity
• Take control by asking the questions
• Don't sign on the spot, shop around
• If in any doubt, ask the person to leave or call your local Trading Standards Authority.
• If you are suspicious, why not ask the salesman if you can take their photograph – on your mobile phone, for example? If the person is legitimate, they probably wont mind.

If you decide to buy:

• Don't be rushed into a sale
• Always get any agreement you make in writing

Please stay vigilant and check on vulnerable neighbours.