Bogus doorstep callers include
- Rogue builders and roofers who charge high prices for poor work that is often unnecessary.
- People offering to tarmac your drive with “leftovers” claiming to work for the council or the highways department. They often quote you one price and then demand considerably more once it has been laid.
- Jobbing gardeners who disappear soon after starting the job if paid in advance, or do a poor quality job not worth the money demanded.
- People selling "leather" three-piece suites, who take hundreds of pounds for a poor-quality, non-leather product that often turns out to be unsafe.
- Fish sellers who pressurise people into buying large quantities of over priced fish that is often of a poor quality.
Staying Safe Tips
LOCK: Make sure your door is locked when you’re at home and don’t unlock it until you’re sure who is on the other side.
STOP: If someone appears at your door, and you’re not expecting any visitors, check that all the doors are locked. Look through the spy-hole or the window to see who it is.
CHAIN: If you decide to open the door, put the door chain or bar on first. Keep the bar or chain on while you are talking.
(Normally, when the door is shut and locked, leave the bar or chain off, in case you need to get out in an emergency)
CHECK: Ask for, and double check, their identity card. And if you’re still not sure, look in the phone book for a number you can ring to confirm their identity. If they can’t show you any identification, don’t let them in.
You should never be pressurised into agreeing to buy something or have work done, and a bona fide trader will always provide you with a document setting out your rights to cancel the contract. Always seek alternative quotes from established local traders before making your decision to proceed with any work.
At the end of the day, the simplest advice is always the best - if in doubt, keep them out.
Distraction Burglary
Distraction burglary has generated considerable public concern during recent years due to the predatory way in which elderly and vulnerable people are targeted by bogus callers.
Darlington Partnership’s Sustainable Community Strategy, One Darlington: Perfectly Placed, identifies the ‘Safer Darlington’ theme as being critical to the delivery of One Darlington. Darlington Borough Council Trading Standards Service, together with it’s partners, is working towards stamping out doorstep crime and making vulnerable Darlington residents feel safer in their own homes.
A key element within our doorstep crime prevention strategy is to focus attention on raising awareness of the issues with those people identified as more likely to become victims, as the transient nature of offenders can sometimes make offences extremely difficult to investigate after they have occurred.
'No rogue trader zone' set up
DARLINGTON’S first ‘no rogue trader zone’ has been set up to help residents protect themselves from cowboy door-to-door traders
High Coniscliffe has been chosen as the pilot area for the scheme funded by the Darlington Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership.
The aim of the scheme is to ensure residents and businesses feel safe and that rogue traders know they will not be tolerated in the area.
Residents in High Coniscliffe have been sent information about the scheme as well as stickers to publicise to rogue traders that they will not be tolerated.
Residents are being asked to report any suspicious callers in the area to Consumer Direct, who will pass the information to Darlington Trading Standards to investigate. If anyone suspects a crime is in progress they should contact the police.
Street signs will also be erected in the village to identify the area as a ‘no rogue trader zone’ to anyone thinking about selling door-to-door.