Press releases
16 November 2006
Scambusters
Scambusters initiative tackles doorstep crime.
Trading Standards officers have been given a £1.8 million boost to step up their war against rogue traders who prey on the elderly and vulnerable.
The funding has been made available by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to finance three regional pilot 'Scambusters' projects, with specialist teams targeting unscrupulous and dodgy traders.
Two have already been set up and are fully operational in the North East and the Midlands.
The third Scambusters team, covering the 61 local authorities in London and the South East, started work in September and will be officially launched to coincide with National Consumer Week (November 20-24).
Already the new team has uncovered some horror cases - among them the recent case of an elderly retired civil servant in London who paid £82,000 for 'substantial' work on the roof of his home when in fact the traders had done nothing whatsoever.
It has since been found the case links into an existing police investigation. Information about the alleged culprits is now being shared.
Other cases include:
- A cold-calling roofer who has been arrested following evidence that he had breached an Anti Social Behaviour Order (ASBO) granted last year preventing him cold calling in parts of the South East.
- A gang of traders carrying out paving work who have been charging ten times more than their original quotes and causing disruption to householders. Victims have been identified and progress is being made in identifying the criminals involved.
Vulnerable consumers are regularly ripped off by home maintenance criminals, often being bullied into having unnecessary work carried out and then being overcharged and sometimes intimidated if they refuse to pay.
And that may not be the end of their problems: having paid up once, they can find themselves repeatedly targeted in the future.
Announcing the launch of the 'Scambusters' across the North East, North East Scambuster Team Manager, Jeff Bell said: 'The advent of Consumer Direct is allowing us to adopt an intelligence-led approach to targeting cowboy and rogue traders. We are also seeking to form a strong network of enforcement agencies and are very excited by a proposed collaboration with the three Police Forces in the region.
'Like the South East team, we are building up a picture of rogue, property repair traders who are preying on the elderly and vulnerable. We are also focusing upon a team of door-to-door, cold-call salesmen offering bulk supplies of frozen fish. These are not your local, friendly, mobile fish merchants. Their stock is often short-weight, falsely described, on or past its use-by date and has been driven around in non-refrigerated vans. One pensioner was conned out of £800 for virtually worthless fish, many are intimidated or bullied into handing over their money. Others have found their cheques altered, and some have been the victims of distraction burglary by the same salespeople.'
The Scambusters team aims to tackle cold-calling cons and doorstep crime, high pressure sales and deceptive selling techniques targeting the vulnerable.
As well as taking prosecutions against the traders who break the law, Scambusters will also be looking to take action under the Enterprise Act; by seeking Anti Social Behaviour Orders; and by tracing the assets of the criminals with a view to recovering them.
The Scambusters teams rely significantly on information given by members of the public to Consumer Direct North East, the Government funded telephone and online consumer advice service which works in partnership with local authority trading standards services.
Consumer Direct North East can be contacted on 08454 04 05 06 or visit the website at www.consumerdirect.gov.uk
About Scambusters
Scambusters in the North East of England is a partnership project between NETSA (North East Trading Standards Association). Funding has been initially provided to run the teams until March 2008.
Case Study
Mr Steel is 75 years old and lives in North London. He owns a large terraced house which he moved into in 1968. The house is about 100 years old. In around 1986, Mr Steel had a new roof fitted to the property by a reputable company.
On 16 September 2006, Mr Steel was walking close to his home when he was approached by three men who were in a van. One of the men told Mr Steel that his roof was in need of repair and they invited him to jump in the van to take him back home. Back at the house, one of the men put up a ladder and told Mr Steel that he had a tile missing and it would cost £60 to replace.
On 18 September 2006, the men came back and told Mr Steel that he had some rotten wood in the roof and there was some water damage near the chimney stack. This would cost £3000 to put right and Mr Steel believed that the work was needed. He got £3000 cash from his bank and paid the money. The next day, some scaffolding was erected at the house and the scam continued. The story now was that all the roof tiles needed replacing and this would cost £10,000 for cash. Mr Steel withdrew £10,000 and paid the men. The next day, the men said that the roof was in danger of collapse and would need a new RSJ which would cost £25,000 to fit. Mr Steel was worried into agreeing to this additional work and paid over a further £25,000 cash. The price continued to escalate with further cash amounts being paid over until the total amount reached £82,000. Mr Steel eventually realised what had happened but it was too late - the criminals had his money and they were nowhere to be found.
No meaningful work was carried out on Mr Steel's property. He has now had to spend £14,000 to put right what the criminals did to his roof.
The activities of these criminals are now being investigated by the Police and Trading Standards. Nobody has yet been charged with any offences in relation to Mr Steel.
About National Consumer Week 2006
Next week sees the start of National Consumer Week which runs from
20th - 24th November.
NCW 2006 is themed 'Hey Big Spender!' and focuses on the problems, pitfalls and best practice for consumers when they make major purchases, including homes, cars, holidays, furniture and audio-visual equipment.
National Consumer Week, which has been running for 17 years, provides a platform to inform and educate consumers; to support fair traders; and to lobby businesses, trade organisations and the Government to improve the service to consumers.
The Trading Standards Institute (TSI) coordinates the week, supported by local authority trading standards services. This year Consumer Direct, the government’s national telephone and online consumer advice service, is our partner.
Consumer Direct North East Events
Consumer Direct North East will be attending the following events during NCW, where Consumer Direct carrier bags with goodies will be handed out at each event:
Monday 20 November 2006
BBC Bus – Redcar High Street
Tuesday 21 November 2006
Working alongside regional Scambusters team at the 'Inside Justice Campaign' at the Guildhall, Newcastle http://lcjb.cjsonline.gov.uk/Northumbria/515.html
Wednesday 22 November 2006
BBC Bus - Sedgefield Village Hall, Durham
Thursday 23 November 2006 - Working alongside regional Scambusters team at the 'Inside Justice Campaign' at the Guildhall, Newcastle.
Friday 24 - Sunday 26 November 2006
Cornmill Shopping Centre working with Darlington Trading Standards. Advisors will be available to give free advice.
