Vince Green Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 An aquaintance of mine, struggling to build up a business after being made redundant, was pressure washing the drive of a house in a cul de sac. As is his normal practice he drops leaflets to all the surrounding houses when he was finished. One lady opened the door to him and asked how much he charged. He gave her a quote and one of his leaflets. A few days later he gets a call to say OK and he arranges to go the next morning. When he arrives there the local homebeat officer was there waiting for him, told him it was a no cold calling area (how would he know that?) gave him a ####ing took his details, which was already on the leaflet anyway, and told him he would be recorded on the police database. He lost a days work, plus travelling expenses, was treated like a criminal and spoken to very badly. I think he's got grounds for a complaint. What are these no cold calling areas? How would you know you are in one? and more importantly do they have any legal status? How can you be cautioned for breaking a law that doesn't appear to exist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chard Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 I wouldn't have accepted a ####ing off the grubby little weasel. He'd have got his fortune told there and then. Little Hitler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashman Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 On the flip side, the police had a bobby on the beat who followed up on a complaint made by the general public. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiderdude Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Could it be that the lady in question had been scammed in the past by someone, she was worried that she was being targeted again. So, contacted the local NPT to express her concerns and they responded accordingly. Generally, no cold call areas are estates where the vulnerable live such as the elderly whom tend to be targeted. JMHO... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devon Fox Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 I wouldn't class leaflet dropping as a cold call though? If he was banging on doors etc that would be cold calling - he was there by her I invitation as far as I can see? I support our police - but this does sound rather petty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
officerdibble777 Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 It sounds like he has been in an area of mostly elderly people and one of them is simply doing the "neighbourhood watch" thing.The homebeat officer seems to have handled the situation very badly,and a word to his senior would'nt go amiss.When you have a large number of seniors living in a small area there are always one or two that are vunerable and make an easy target for the not so moral minded,and con-men john Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stour-boy Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 So whats the offence? hawking or peddling without a licence? I dont think so.Those laws may have gone out years ago.It would certainly be worth following up and which data base would you be put on (Drive cleaning) ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchieboy Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 If there is such a thing (Legally recognised) as a "No cold calling area" does that apply to people like JWs etc, and of course what about the postman who drops off advertising garbage mixed in with your regular post, isn't he committing a crime as well then? Surely your friend was there at the lady's invitation so it would be interesting to know what crime he was being reported for! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artschool Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 (edited) its not illegal, just an informal ban. if it had been illegal you can bet the officer would have arrested your friend. its the ladies word against your friends whether or not a leaflet was dropped or a door knocked. for all we know maybe the lady felt pressured into having her driveway cleaned. she had obviously changed her mind on the morning so he wasnt going to get the work anyway. Edited April 5, 2011 by artschool Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirty Harry Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 He was probably there to check out if your mate was one of the thieving **** who generally reside in caravans who like to prey on the elderley and vulnerable. Along with tree surgery, emergency building repairs and laying driveways pressure washing is quite a common way for them to make a few quid. Fair play to the officer for doing this. As for the no cold calling area there are usually little signs up like NHW signs and these are there to protect the vulnerable. Was your mate really spoken to badly or was he just spoken to and did not like what he was told? I imagine they have taken his details incase a little old lady pays £3000 to have her driveway cleaned and your mate could be spoken to to help them with their enquiries. Harry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince Green Posted April 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 she had obviously changed her mind on the morning so he wasnt going to get the work anyway. I don't think there was any intention to ever have the work done, it was only ever a ploy to get him round there. that really is the basis of the complaint when it is made. He gave her a leaflet with his name and address on. The police could have contacted him directly. That would have meant that he hadn't wasted a whole working day for the sake of a fifteen minute conversation. plus the driving. Do con men hand out leaflets with their name and address on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirty Harry Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Yes they do and most of the time they are very professional looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*danny* Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 leaflet distribution isnt cold calling, an INVATATION is not a crime. the old lady asked for a service so where is the crime? do Plod turn up when you have your sky installed, do they tell the plumber to get lost when he turns up to a job? the thing with the police these days is they are all arrogant and think they are above the law. they have forgotten that they are there to serve and protect us. theyre an elite force with permission to assault murder and thieve from us. they all strike me as the type of person that was bullied as a child and joined the force to seek revenge for their cruel childhood and gain power cant seee that your friend has done anything wrong but theres not much you can do about it other than move on and use it as a lesson learned - make a complaint and theyll probably look into your background do extensive research and make a note till a time comes that they can get you for something I used to respect the police, was a time i wanted to Join. Personal experiences with them have left me with no respect at all. and thats the way it is slowly becoming for most of britain IMO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince Green Posted April 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 (edited) He was probably there to check out if your mate was one of the thieving **** who generally reside in caravans who like to prey on the elderley and vulnerable. Along with tree surgery, emergency building repairs and laying driveways pressure washing is quite a common way for them to make a few quid. Fair play to the officer for doing this. As for the no cold calling area there are usually little signs up like NHW signs and these are there to protect the vulnerable. Was your mate really spoken to badly or was he just spoken to and did not like what he was told? I imagine they have taken his details incase a little old lady pays £3000 to have her driveway cleaned and your mate could be spoken to to help them with their enquiries. Harry He was spoken to in a high handed and finger wagging way. Anyway, he had already quoted her £150 or what ever so there was no question of £3000, plus he had already done the neighbours. As I said before, do ****** hand out their names and addresses? and why didn't they contact him directly. was it really necessary to resort to silly tricks to lure him over there under false pretences and waste his time and money. Seems to me that the homebeat officer has been watching too much TV and needs a bit of a reality check. I don't know what a NHW sign is or how you would know one but a formal complaint is going in in writing to the Chief Constable apparantly ( courtesy of Citizens Advice) with a copy to the Police Complaints people. How much time and money is that going to waste to process? Edited April 5, 2011 by Vince Green Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunkield Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 I don't know what a NHW sign is Neighbourhood Watch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 as said the signs will be on lamp posts as you get into the area This outlines what you can and can't do. Its to stop amateurs mob as well and seems quite a good idea, http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/sccwebsite/sccwspages.nsf/LookupWebPagesByTITLE_RTF/Frequently+asked+questions+about+No+Cold+Calling+Zones?opendocument Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artschool Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 I don't think there was any intention to ever have the work done, it was only ever a ploy to get him round there. that really is the basis of the complaint when it is made. He gave her a leaflet with his name and address on. The police could have contacted him directly. That would have meant that he hadn't wasted a whole working day for the sake of a fifteen minute conversation. plus the driving. Do con men hand out leaflets with their name and address on? oh i thought she had agreed to it on the doorstep. i agree about why they didnt just phone him? they were probably just as disappointed not to catch a crook when he turned out honest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 He was spoken to in a high handed and finger wagging way. Anyway, he had already quoted her £150 or what ever so there was no question of £3000, plus he had already done the neighbours. As I said before, do ****** hand out their names and addresses? and why didn't they contact him directly. was it really necessary to resort to silly tricks to lure him over there under false pretences and waste his time and money. Seems to me that the homebeat officer has been watching too much TV and needs a bit of a reality check. I don't know what a NHW sign is or how you would know one but a formal complaint is going in in writing to the Chief Constable apparantly ( courtesy of Citizens Advice) with a copy to the Police Complaints people. How much time and money is that going to waste to process? Hi, If all was as stated, then a formal complaint should be made. Not just for an apology but also to mark matey's card for future reference. Makes you wonder though what possible relationship was there between customer and matey! Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UKPoacher Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Once again we areasked to comment on secondhand information. Weonly have what your friend said to you and what of that you remembered. It might not actually have been as stated. People do tend to exagerate to make a point. I'm just pleased that plod took the time to be at the old lady's house when your friend called. He didn't arrive by magic or divine intervention either. Someone must have called the job in and imagine the Daily Mail redaerrs amongst you's horror if plod had ignored the call and the old lady had been charged £3,000 for the work and taken to her bank for payment. You'd be amazed at how many old people are fleeced out of their life savings by con men and fraudulent callers purporting to be from the water board or other reputable agency. Just because someone has given a leaflet with a name and address on doesn't mean it is genuine. Only this morning a nice gentleman from the Nigerian Government invited me to contact him to claim $60,000 back I had apparently lost in a scam. I just have sent him my bank details. However, I'm not that stupid as to expect him to transfer $60,000 immediately. No. I'll ask him to hang on to the money a bit until the exchange rate is better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaun4860 Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 (edited) Thing that gets me here is the fact that SHE approached him after getting a leaflet and asked him to come back the next day after agreeing a price.... 1- If she wasnt happy with the price dont ask him back? 2- If she thought he was scamming people why didnt she ask her neighbour who was having the work done? Maybe she was one of those busy body types that dont speak to the neighbours but reports everything/body to the police Fair play to the police though for turning up and investigating even though it seems silly shaun Edited April 5, 2011 by shaun4860 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UKPoacher Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Thing that gets me here is the fact that SHE approached him after getting a leaflet and asked him to come back the next day after agreeing a price.... 1- If she wasnt happy with the price dont ask him back? 2- If she thought he was scamming people why didnt she ask her neighbour who was having the work done? Maybe she was one of those busy body types that dont speak to the neighbours but reports everything/body to the police Fair play to the police though for turning up and investigating even though it seems silly shaun Maybe SHE didn't call the police? Just like last week when we were asked to attend a similar incident after being alerted by an old lady's concerned Grand Daughter. Maybe she was a normal trusting old lady who would not be as naturally suspicious as would younger people who have more exposure to this sort of crime? Like I said, we don't actually know what happened. It is another bash the police thread with no chance of the full facts being published. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 fundamentally the area set itself up with the police and neighbourhood watch as a no cold calling zone. Matey couldn't read the signs and didn't know what they meant so when he broke the rules an old lady grassed him up. He only had a talking to from a beat officer thats it now he knows about the zones he may restrict his marketing to houses that aren't in them. The fundamentals are old people are vulnerable to this form of selling so the zones are set up to protect them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nial Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 fundamentally the area set itself up with the police and neighbourhood watch as a no cold calling zone. Matey couldn't read the signs and didn't know what they meant so when he broke the rules an old lady grassed him up. Not according to the OP and the guidelines you posted above. I wouldn't blame the individual peeler for following up though! Nial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrispti Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 Sounds like the work of an un loved PCSO to me :unsure: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J@mes Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 I take it he holds a Trade Effluent License from the Environment Agency? And that all his work goes through the books and that his accounts are squeaky clean? No, thought not. I'd take it as a lesson learned and keep my nose clean rather than kick up a stink and become a bit of a target Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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