Door Step Callers - What are our rights?

GemBee_2

Not sure if this is the right place to post, but thought it was worth a start...

My Grandparents have a sign on their front door along the lines of 'no door step callers...' It was given to all of the elderly people in their village.

A few days ago someone from the RSPCA knocked on their door asking them to sign up to donate money to them. My Nana wanting to get rid of him signed up to pay them £5 a month, she gave them all her details and her bank details and off they went.

The following morning she realised that she was a little silly and called the RSPCA to check they it was definately them that had come to the house, which is was thankfully. However she was told on the phone that they had actually signed her up to pay £5 per week!!!! She is almost £80 and living on a state pension so can't afford anywhere near this!

Luckily they cancelled it for her, but I am just wondering if there is anything else that we can do. I was under the impression that if you had a sign on your door they are no allowed to knock and ask you to sign into any agreements . What if they had done this with other residents who also have these signs.

My Nana luckily has a good family around her to tell her not to do this again, but others don't have this and I would hate to think that people are preying on their vulnerability.

Anyone with any advice?

MamaMoo_2

I'd contact your local Trading Standards. Companies usually need licences to do this, and by ignoring "No cold callers" signs, they are potentially both breaking that contract, and committing a criminal offence.

NeilF3485

As far as I'm aware it is not a "crime" to knock on a door, even if there is a sign asking you not to, but you would hope a reputable charity/company would follow your wishes. I suppose it might come under "trespass" but it's unlikely.

Ultimately, you have the right to answer your door (or not) to whomever you choose. You also have the right to refuse to donate money, give personal details etc.

Put the door on a chain, or use the peephole, and if you don't know them, don't answer! Or open with it on a chain, and say that you are not interested in anything.

Whilst I appreciate that with the elderly it can be viewed as "preying on the vulnerable etc." but you say yourself "my Nana wanting to get rid of them signed up" - sounds pretty voluntary to me? Did your Nana not say "I'm sorry I'm on a pension and not in a position to donate money" (or similar) before deciding the best way was to give them money?

lincroft1710

Where "No Cold Calling Zones" are in existence, anyone selling a product/service by door knocking without a prior appointment will probably be in contravention of local bye-laws. Charity collectors may be not be in contravention however.

dontone

My Mum has one of those "no callers" signs on her door, it does absolutely no good.
Where I live we seldom get cold callers, we do get the occassional gypsy/witness/charity bags, but when my Mum lives they get at least 5 to 6 callers per week from various companies.
Mum is usually quite savvy, but she did once let a rep from Talk Talk "talk" his way in her house, and straight away he wanted her to sign various contracts where he didn't explain what they were for - Luckily both me and my brother was in the house and I piped up straight away that Mum wasn't signing anything and tried to get rid of him. Trouble is if you let them in, they won't leave, it was only because my brother, who was sorting a problem out over the phone in the other room, came into the living room and told the fella that Talk Talk wasn't welcome in that house.
He promptly left, but me and my brother told mum off for letting him in in the first place. She's in her late 50's, but she said that she got a bit flustered and intimitated and felt under pressure from him to let him in. She's not done it since
What I would suggest to anyone who is asked by charities to sign up on the doorstep is to say that they don't have a bank account. Because the donation is taken by D/D. So no bank details = no money for the charity. Mum always uses this tactic and the charity reps leave.
A big fat "NOT INTERESTED" and a door in the face usually gets rid of other pests that turn up.

browneyedbazzi

Cold calling at a property where it's obvious the cold caller isn't welcome (by way of the sign or previous contact with the occupier) could be classed as an aggressive commercial practice which is a criminal offence - this does only apply to 'commercial' practices though, so the charity collections are a bit iffy (although many of the collectors are employed by companies which are for-profit and operated independently to the charities so I think it could apply to them).

Charities doing house to house collections do require licences either from the local authority, or in the case of national charities an exemption from the Home Office. If enough people complain about the practices of the collectors - including things like them knocking doors with no cold callers signs, taking advantage of elderly/vulnerable people etc, then they could lose their permissions. I'd definitely write a letter to the local authority and copy it to the charity so they know that the actions of their collectors are threatening their permissions and hopefully they'll be better in future about training the collectors and setting limits for them!

GemBee_2

Thank you for all of your comments.

My Grandparents are Geordies and still think the world is like it was 50 years ago where everyone in nice and no one would try and con you. They live in a little village with 40 or so bungalows at sort of a community. Everyone that lives there is over the age of 70, many of them windowed women and it is so frightening to think that they could be pestered too.

I will write a letter and see what they say.

paddyrg

GemBee wrote: »

Thank you for all of your comments.

My Grandparents are Geordies and still think the world is like it was 50 years ago where everyone in nice and no one would try and con you. They live in a little village with 40 or so bungalows at sort of a community. Everyone that lives there is over the age of 70, many of them windowed women and it is so frightening to think that they could be pestered too.

I will write a letter and see what they say.

Why not ask the council if you get enough petitioners together from the estate if it can become a 'cold-call-free-zone' or similar, like someone above described?