Cold call warning to Salisbury residents after reports of solar panel offer
People are being urged to report any incidents
There's a warning to Salisbury residents about cold calling, after reports of a man knocking on people's houses claiming to be working with Wiltshire Council.
He offers them a free solar panel system and asks for their personal financial information.
Wiltshire Trading Standards say that while the local authority are promoting an energy efficiency scheme, which may include the installation of solar panels, their partners do not cold call in this way.
They have issued the following advice:
- Do not do business with cold callers and certainly not to hand over personal information just because they ask for it
- Never feel pressured into making a decision on the spot as any legitimate trader will be happy to return at a later date – you may want to ask a friend, neighbour or relative to be with you when they call back to give a second opinion
- Never agree to a trader starting work straight away and certainly never hand over any money without seeing proper paperwork and making sure that you understand the terms and conditions, including cancellation rights
Anyone who is cold called should report the incident to the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133.
Meanwhile, Wiltshire Trading Standards say that if a cold caller is at your door and you feel unsafe or have told them to go away and they refuse, call the police on 101 or if it is urgent 999.