Be Aware of Doorstep Criminals

As a nation, we are all aware of door to door sales people and how annoying and pushy they can sometimes be. Recently it has come to light that there is something far more dishonest than your innocent internet or Tupperware salesperson, these people are called doorstep criminals and they will do what they can to make you believe that you need unnecessary goods or services. Although there is not much reporting or statistics on doorstep crime, latest research shows that there could be as many as 170,000 incidents of doorstep crime each year. Doorstep criminals tend to target the most vulnerable in the community, such as the elderly or people with ill-heath. They will come to your home and try and get you to pay an extremely unreasonable price for a service you don’t even need, like a new roof or driveway. In some cases victims have been frogmarched into banks to withdraw large quantities of money by these doorstep criminals. What Can I do? A new campaign came out of the National Consumer Week labelled ‘Good Neighbours Stop Rogue Traders’ which has been set up to make citizens aware of the signs of doorstep crime and what to do if this issue arises. Here are some of the signs of unwanted doorstep callers:

• A van is parked near your neighbour’s property with workmen in
• Ladders or scaffolding appearing on the property
• Typical tradesmen noises such as banging, drilling or chainsaws
• Poor quality work done on the property such as roof work or the driveway
• Your neighbour appears to be distressed and unhappy
• Your neighbour visiting the bank or building society more frequently than usual and them being accompanied by a trader

To prevent doorstep crime from even beginning, take on board these tips to help your neighbours and fellow community:

• Look for tradesmen recommendations from family or friends or try the Norfolk Trusted Trader website, set up by the Norfolk County Council
• Check testimonials and references of the tradesmen and try and look at some of their previous work
• Make sure that the tradesmen has the right amount of public liability insurance for the work being carried out on the property
• Write a detailed specification of what the work is and what you want doing. Make sure that the quote given to you is including everything (supply of materials and disposing of the rubbish)

Where Can I Go For More Information? There is a ‘Nominated Neighbour’ scheme available in many areas of the UK which seeks the help of neighbours or relatives to check whether unexpected callers are genuine. Banks, neighbourhood and older people’s charities are taking part in this important scheme also. On top of this the National Trading Standards has a Doorstep Crime Project Team which has been piloting schemes across the UK and has produced four arrests and fifteen investigations, proving that the schemes are working. And of course, spreading the word is a vital part of making people aware of what can happen when these doorstep criminals approach our homes. If you are looking for a new roof, then you are in safe hands with us. We have received a number of certificates and accreditation including one from the National Federation of Roofing Contractors Limited. As well as this, we have numerous testimonials from previous customers. Please feel free to contact us on 01603 418818 for any enquiries. For more information on how to make your community a safer place, there is some additional material you can read and download here.