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»9th December 2009 to 12th May 2010
9th December 2009 to12th May 2010
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12 May 2010
Please be advised that a number of complaints are being received relating to cold calling by men selling intercoms systems to residents of sheltered accommodation and local authority housing throughout the Leyland, Preston, Lancaster and Burnley/ Pendle areas.
Various reports have been received and there are believed to be two companies currently operating in this way.
One company, which gives a Blackpool address, advises residents that the cost of the intercoms is usually £80 but will cost £40 if purchased through the Council. Sometimes residents believe the intercoms are linked to police schemes, or to their housing provider, none of which is true.
A second set of two salesmen, sometimes giving Lancaster addresses, are operating in the east of the county and appear to be charging around £250 for intercoms systems. Residents are led to believe the company is connected with the housing provider and are shocked at then having to pay.
Plesae be aware these companies have no official links, the products may not work, and damage may be caused to doors etc when a drill is used during the fitting.
We would be grateful to receive any further intelligence on these salemen, especially if they are currently trading in an area. Please refer any complaints to Lancashire Trading Standards Service, 55 Guildhall Street, Preston, Lancs PR1 3NU via Consumer Direct tel 08454 040506 and ask them to pass the information to trading standards straight away. If there is any fraud or criminal damage the matter should also be referred to the police.
4 May 2010
Residents are advised that there are a number of scams in circulation at the moment.
One involves second hand cars sold at attractive prices on the Autotrader website. When enquired about, the vehicles are currently based abroad and a quick sale is desired for personal reasons. Potential buyers are informed that the vehicle will be sent over using a shipping agent, typically costing £600 or so, either to be halved between the seller and buyer, or paid by the buyer. There will then be a chance for inspection. If the buyer is not happy the shipping cost will be refunded. Be aware that this is a variation on an ongoing vehicle-purchase scam- the vehicle does not exist, and the 'seller' intends to take the money and run.
Buyers are advised to be suspicious of email-only sales where they cannot speak to a seller. Also be careful when purchasing items to be sent from abroad- it can be dangerous to send money up front. Check that a seller in the UK actually lives at the house he claims to be resident at, and that a logbook is produced where addresses tie in.
A second scam involves Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which claims consumers have made large amounts on stocks and shares but that a fee has to be paid to release the money. This is easy to fall for if the consumer, although chosen at random, happens to possess such investments, but is of course another fee scam.
A further reminder is issued relating to clothing collection company Supporting Arms, currently collecting in the county– please be aware that this company is not a registered charity and any goods given are going to a business operation.
29 April 2010
Residents are advised that a number of issues have arisen relating to the alleged non-arrival of concert tickets purchased from www.worldwideticketstore.com , which is believed to be a possible scam.
The site does not appear to be accessible at the moment but may start up again.
If ordered tickets are not received, and customers cannot get in touch with the supplier, they should contact their credit card company in writing explaining the problem and asking for their credit card to be refunded with the amount paid, under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. If a debit card has been used this section does not apply, however in this case the credit card issuer should be asked if there is a chargeback scheme for contracts where fraud or non-performance is an issue.
Please refer any complaints to Lancashire Trading Standards Service, 55 Guildhall Street , Preston , Lancs PR1 3NU via Consumer Direct tel 08454 040506. If there is any loss of money the matter should also be referred to the police.
22 March 2010
Residents are advised that there are several possibly unfair practices hitting Lancashire at the moment.
Euxt on, South Ribble area: R esidents are being telephoned in the early evening by a male who says he is from "The Crime Prevention Office" stating that the police arenot happy with the alarms in this area, as they are very unreliable & they will not respond to an alarm sounding. Soon after, a female rings, not giving a company name, but saying her company is marketing wireless alarms, & they could arrange a house visit & survey for only one pound. The alarm would cost approximately £2000, but it would be linked to a private company, who would respond if the alarm sounded.
The company is alleged to use hard- sell tactics and to say that the resident has lost a great opportunity if refusing, & that they would now be contacting another household in the area with this great offer. This sales tactic appears to be a new variation on the recent flood of sales attempts throughout Lancashire where residents have been "chosen" for a free alarm system. Once in the house they will be signed up to a maintenance agreement costing thousands.Needless to say, the company is not linked to the police or to their crime prevention officers.
Fleetwood- young men have been leafletting houses for a window company while wearing jackets bearing the word "Police". When quizzed they said they were designer jackets. Residents should bear in mind that operatives selling such goods and services door-to-door will not be connected to any official organisation.
The Ribble Valley : A company called International Awards, which is based abroad, possibly in the US , is writing to consumers to inform them they have won a sum of money. They are sent a cheque for £1900 and asked to bank it. The consumer is then asked to send the money back via cheque as a matter of urgency in order to pay taxes, on the promise that there will be a very large amount delivered by special courier in less than 72 hours, although the consumer must not disclose this to anyone for security reasons. Once the second cheque is cashed and the money vanishes from the consumer's account they find out that the original cheque has bounced.
Throughout Lancashire: We are receiving lots of complaints from small businesses about various companies cold calling by telephone and demanding payment for
previously-agreed advertisements in various types of publications, ranging from health and safety magazines, to wedding planners or hotel brochures. In many cases card details are given on the understanding that the contract was agreed by another partner or the company boss, when in fact no contract is in existence. In addition, many of the publications do not appear to exist. Businesses are requested to advise their admin or accounts staff to double-check all payment requests for advertising.
Throughout Lancashire: A company hands out draw tickets for a car, they then ring consumers to tell them they have not won the car but have won the opportunity to have a carpet shampooed free of charge. They do not inform consumers on the phone that they are going to try to sell them a Kirby vaccuum cleaner for almost £2,500. Consumers may then face a long session of demonstrations and hard-sell tactics in their home, as well as further sales attempts by phone. Trading Standards advises that unless residents really want an expensive vacuum cleaner they should not accept the offer of a free carpet clean, since it is easy to say yes to an unwanted product once salesmen are in your home.
Throughout Lancashire: Consumers are receiving emails purporting to be from HSBC, informing the consumer that they have logged in unsuccessfully for internet banking, and asking them to re-try. The emails are scams attempting to obtain personal information from consumers and should not be responded to.
Residents are advised of an incident involving cold calling traders which occurred today in an established No Cold Calling Area in Thornton Cleveleys.
Two UPVC window salesmen entered the signed No Cold Calling Area and informed householders that they had been authorised by the local police to enter the zone. When challenged by one resident, they gave him a police log number which they claimed exempted them from the usual NCCA controls. The resident rang the police in front of the salesmen, who then ran away. The log number was of course bogus. We have no details of the window business the salesmen were from. Our advice to NCCA residents is not to be taken in by this ploy and to continue refusing all business with cold calling traders.
Please refer any complaints to Lancashire Trading Standards Service, 55 Guildhall Street , Preston , Lancs PR1 3NU via Consumer Direct tel 08454 040506. If there is any loss of money the matter should also be referred to the police.
8 th March 2010
Warning about alarm-company cold-calling in the Lancaster and Morecambe area
POLICE in Lancaster and Morecambe have issued a warning about an alarm company that is falsely claiming to be working with the fire service, the police or local authority.
The company, are currently operating in the Lancaster and Morecambe areas and sales staff are contacting householders by telephone and are using high pressure tactics to make arrangements for their sales teams and installers to call at the address.
Jan Brown, Crime Prevention Officer for the Lancaster and Morecambe district said; “If anyone is approached by this company, they must not feel pressured into agreeing to business on their doorstep. Often what may seem like a bargain at the time can be found cheaper from alternative retailers and advice is available from the Crime Prevention Office who can supply information about choosing a domestic intruder alarm for your home.
“The Crime Prevention Office at Morecambe Police Station also offers free crime prevention advice about any issue and we would encourage people to come and talk to us if they need any advice.”
For further advice, you can either visit or call the Crime Prevention team on 01524 596988 or Consumer Direct on 08454 040506.
15 February 2010
Residents are advised that there are several scams and possible unfair practices hitting Lancashire at the moment.
South Ribble- consumers have complained about a cold caller who phones, saying that he is from British Telecom, and that he is offering a new service called "Do Not Call ". For a one off payment of £9.95 the consumer can take advantage of a life-long service banning cold calls. Financial information to pay for this service is then requested over the telephone. Consumers are warned that these phone calls are not made on behalf of BT, and asked not to give personal information to companies they do not know over the phone.
South Ribble, West Lancs- " Supporting Arms " bags have been left for collection at various locations, asking for unwanted goods. These are not left on behalf of a registered charity, and unfortunately the collections sometimes coincide the collection of other bags left by properly registered charities. Please be aware that the profits from sales of goods given to such companies as Supporting Arms are likely to go to support private businesses rather than charitable enterprises.
Throughout Lancashire- consumers selling goods on ebay are warned that after notification by ebay that a sale has been successful, you may receive a fake email, very official in appearance and purporting to be from Paypa l, requesting that you post the item and send them the tracking number. The email states that payment has been received but is in a holding account till paypal receives the requested information, at which point they will release the money. Believing that the email is genuine, the seller then posts the item abroad, only to find later that the paypal email is fake when no payment is received. Please be very careful when sending any goods abroad, especially to Africa where many of these scams originate.
Throughout Lancashire- Businesses, schools and nursing homes across the county are being warned to watch out for bogus invoices that claim to be from directory publisher Yell in relation to its products and services. The warning comes after a number of complaints, including one from an Accrington primary school that recently received a bogus £500 invoice. The scammers seek to mislead Yell customers into signing up to fake advertising contracts which sometimes result in repeated requests for payment by phone. Some people may be duped into thinking they are taking out Yell advertising or renewing existing advertising programmes. Bogus order forms are sent by e-mail or fax and contain look-alike "Yellow Pages" branding. Customers who return the form subsequently receive invoices and requests for payment. Some have even received threatening telephone calls. In one instance, scammers set up copycat websites resembling Yell.com. Yell customers should be particularly alert to any correspondence they receive containing contact or bank account details in Holland or Germany . Some of the names to beware of are:
• Yellow Page UK or Yellow Page AG , which displays an inverted "walking fingers" logo.
• Yellow Pages 24 .
• UK Yellow Guide .
Anyone receiving contact from these traders or anyone similar should ignore any order forms and should not pay any invoices.Throughout Lancashire- Another lottery scam apparently based in Italy- the name given is Chic Express , giving an address in Piemonte- the unsolicited letters claim the consumer has won £66,000 but needs to send a £20 administration fee in the envelope provided. The letters purport to come from Collins & Partners Practice, so-called experts in security & financial transfers.
Residents are strongly advised never to give out personal bank details in response to an unsolicited call or mailing.
26 January 2010
Residents are advised that there are several scams and possible unfair practices hitting Lancashire at the moment.
Chorley and Adlington- men with strong accents are cold calling residents by telephone and pretending to be from Chorley borough council. They claim that the resident's house has been over-rated for council tax, that it is being dropped a band and hence a refund is due, and that the consumer needs to give the caller his or her bank details so that the refund can be given. Needless to say this is a scam, and residents should be strongly warned about these calls.
Rossendale and South Ribble- there are reports of a companies, one giving a Blackpool address, calling consumers and offering to claim back missold payment protection insurance or bank charges. Credit card details are requested and amounts then taken from accounts. Consumers should be aware that a recent Supreme Court judgement ruled for the banks on the issue of allegedly unclear overdraft charges, hence it is more difficult to claim back banking charges. In addition such businesses should be registered as claims management companies with the Ministry of Justice, which is often not the case. Be aware that anyone giving card details over the phone may end up paying more than anticipated. There are proper free channels to investigate overcharging and mis-selling- firstly complain to the bank, and then to the Banking Ombudsman if the response is unsatisfactory.
Rossendale and Ribble Valley- consumers have complained that a cold caller has phoned, said he is sorting out their computer problem when they have not reported one, and then asking for personal and financial details.
Rossendale- a company claiming to be based in India are cold calling residents by telephone and claiming to be collecting income tax. Discounts are offered for agreeing to pay over the phone, and payment details are requested.
Preston and South Ribble- burglar alarm salesmen have been cold calling by telephone offering free alarms to residents and discussing the crime problems in the respective districts to persuade the consumers to agree to survey visits. Be warned that while the alarms may be free, consumers sign up to expensive service agreements which may last several years and cost a total in the thousands.
Residents are strongly advised never to give out personal bank details in response to an unsolicited call or mailing.
Doorstep Issues
22 January 2010
Residents are asked to be aware of the following trader currently operating in Lancashire :
Following several consumer queries, Lancashire Trading Standards Service wishes to warn Lancashire residents that sacks which have been left on people's doorsteps on behalf of Essex-based company Supporting Arms Ltd should not be mistaken for the ones usually deposited by charities.
The firm involved in this case is a profit-making concern. We cannot say for certain that no money is ever given to charity, however it is likely that the only people who benefit from the public's generosity in this instance is Supporting Arms Ltd and those employed by or for them.
The company has been handing out bags (usually blue) throughout Lancashire, recently targeting the Preston area, and currently collecting in the Chorley and Eccleston areas. It requests donors to supply it with anything from clothes to household goods which are then apparently sent to Eastern Europe and Africa where people are employed to sort out the goods for sale and distribution. The managing director of the company is Lithuanian but based in Essex .
We do not believe any criminal acts are being committed by the company, but are anxious to ensure that residents do not read more into the wording on the bag than is actually stated. The number on there- 06846572- is a registered company number and not an indication that Supporting Arms Ltd is a charity or has any charitable status.
Doorstep Issues
21 January 2010
Residents are asked to be wary of the following traders currently operating in Lancashire :
Thornton Cleveleys: Following the arrest of a gang of four for offences relating to work carried out on a pensioner's drive in Thornton Cleveleys on 18 January, in a joint Police and Trading Standards operation which saved the consumer at least £2500, Lancashire Trading Standards Service is warning residents that the gang is believed to have been targetting older residents throughout the county for some time. They operate from sites in various parts of the county, often giving Skelmersdale or Preesall addresses, and are described as white men, some with Irish accents, using a white Ford Transit and a white Ford Flatbed. They cold call and start work washing, then digging up and tarmacing, driveways almost at once. They also offer to mend gateposts or paint roofs. Free work (usually washing drives) may be offered initially though this may then be charged for. High pressure sales tactics are believed to be used and consumers are unclear exactly what has been agreed to. No written cancellation rights are given- a criminal offence. It is believed the work offered may be unnecessary.
The leader of the arrested gang is already being prosecuted by a neighbouring Trading Standards Service after targeting older consumers for unnecessary or misdescribed work, and is believed to be based in Lancashire but working across the North West.
Residents are asked to warn all their neighbours about a group of Irish men cold calling and carrying out this type of work county-wide and beyond, and keep an eye out for anyone vulnerable in the area.
This incident is only one of 39 complaints from Lancashire consumers in December and January, relating to cold calling traders, received and investigated by Lancashire Trading Standards Service.
Doorstep Warnings
Residents are asked to be wary of the following practices currently operating in Lancashire :
Throughout Lancashire - various benefit advice companies based in Ecclestone and Liverpool are currently advertising their services helping people claim disability benefits and tribunals. These companies charge a considerable portion, in some cases 45%, of arrears awarded after a successful appeal, which in many Disability Living Allowance appeals could be £1,000+, money that the claimants are due and need as most of them are on low incomes already. Please be aware that free advice and representation is available to all Lancashire residents from Lancashire County Council's Welfare Rights Service and other agencies.
Throughout Lancashire - franchised businesses selling vacuum cleaners appear to be targeting over-60s in more expensive areas, distributing raffle tickets to win a Nissan Micra or a free carpet shampoo. Customers who win a free carpet shampoo are then subject to a sales pitch for expensive vacuum cleaners during the visit. Please warn residents of the sales intention behind this free offer. Tradesmen should always leave premises when asked- if not, report them to Trading Standards.
Please be aware that there have been complaints from older residents about a caller who telephones to inform them that they are entitled to an extra amount on their Winter Fuel Payment or an extra Christmas Bonus.
The caller then asks for personal details such as date of birth claiming that they need to confirm they are talking to the right person. They then ask for bank account details.
These calls are not genuine and no official service would contact a customer and ask for bank details in this way .
Warning over alarm company claiming to be working with police
RESIDENTS are being warned about an alarm company currently cold calling in the Lancaster and Morecambe area.
Sales staff are contacting householders by telephone and falsely claiming to be working with the police, while offering numerous free gifts such as security marking pens. The company are then using high pressure tactics to make arrangements for their sales teams and installers to call at the address.
Jan Brown, crime prevention officer for the Lancaster and Morecambe district, said: “ If anyone is approached by this company, they must not feel pressured into agreeing to business on their doorstep.
“ Often what may seem like a bargain at the time can be found cheaper from alternative retailers and advice is available from the crime prevention office who can supply information about choosing a domestic intruder alarm for your home.
“Lancashire Police will provide crime prevention advice and security marking pens free of charge and these are available from the main police stations in the area
“ The crime prevention office at Morecambe police station also offers free crime prevention advice about any issue and we would encourage people to come and talk to us if they need any advice. ”
For further advice, you can either visit or call the Crime Prevention team on 01524 596988 or Consumer Direct on 08454 040506.