Police are warning homeowners to be wary of unsolicited tradesmen calling at their door offering to do work.
It follows an incident in Holbury where a man in his 80s almost paid approximately £700 to have a few bricks repaired on his garden wall at his property in Springfield Avenue.
On Monday, December 17 the homeowner woke to find his wall damaged. When he went outside to investigate he was approached by a man who offered to fix it for approximately £900, the homeowner refused.
The man lowered his offer to £750 if he paid cash. The man agreed to return to the address the next day. The homeowner spoke to a family member about the work and they contacted police as they were concerned that this was a high price.
Police are working with Hampshire County Council Trading Standards officers to investigate the incident.
Police Constable Dave Sanderson of Hythe police station said: “This is a very serious incident which is often targeted at older members of the community.
Police are appealing to friends, family and carers of vulnerable adults to make them aware of cold calling and contact us if they are at all suspicious. “If you do agree to work on your property remember under the Consumer Protection Act you do have a seven day ‘cooling off’ period.
This means you are within your rights to cancel the agreement without paying compensation to the tradesman during this time.”
“In addition we would appeal to homeowners who may have had unexplained damage caused to their property, and received a cold call shortly after to contact police.”
Anyone who may have any information about this incident or has had a similar caller is asked to contact PC Sanderson at Hythe police station on 0845 045 45 45, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
|
