Police and Trading Standards Target Rogue Traders in Week of Action

Dyfed Powys Police and Trading Standards officers from across the force area have joined forces with colleagues nationally this week in a crack-down on door step crime.

Rogue Traders and pushy door step sellers are people who prey on the most vulnerable people within society, conning them out of vast sums of money which in many cases are their life savings, for unnecessary and overpriced work, often to the detriment of the victims health.

The week of action which ran from 7th to 11th April 2014 was led by Operation Liberal, the national intelligence unit for distraction burglary and associated travelling criminality and Trading Standards.

During the week Roads Policing officers carried out patrols and vehicle checks across the region, stopping taxi’s and other vehicles such as those seen to be carrying scrap or waste, checking the authenticity of the load, together with the roadworthiness of vehicles and the licences of drivers.

Local Neighbourhood policing teams were also out in their communities providing residents with advice and guidance on how they can keep themselves and members of their communities safe, with many neighbourhoods setting up no cold calling zones in their area.

This means anyone who calls unannounced at the homes of residents in these areas could ultimately face prosecution.

Thousands of leaflets and other promotional items have also been distributed by police and Trading Standards this week, in an attempt to encourage reporting of doorstep crime incidents, with some Neighbourhood Watch volunteers also providing assistance in spreading the word using the community messaging system, Ringmaster.

Chief Inspector Ross Evans said:

“Rogue traders, cold callers and distraction burglars have a devastating impact on peoples’ lives, and often prey on the most vulnerable in our society. This operation targeted unscrupulous rogues and the crime that can be associated with them.

“This week was an important opportunity for Dyfed Powys Police and our partner agencies to demonstrate that these types of crimes will not be tolerated, and to raise awareness within our communities to help avoid people becoming victims.

“And we will be planning similar action days in the months ahead. Criminals who engage in these kinds of activities need to be aware that we are out there and we are watching.”

Ken Yorston, Chair of the Wales Heads of Trading Standards said,

“We are delighted to have worked with the police and other enforcement partners during the week, to tackle the scourge of rogue trading across Wales.

We recognise the benefit of a united front, but enforcement is only part of the solution. That is why we have been working closely with the Welsh Government on this, and through their funding we have invested in updated guidance booklets for consumers, and successfully bid to increase the number of Cold Calling Control Zones in twelve Council areas. The guidance is freely available on our website www.tradingstandardswales.org.uk.

All these things combine to add resilience against rogue trading, and continuing to tackle it will remain a priority area for Trading Standards.”

Members of the public who have been victims of such callers or traders, or who perhaps have friends, neighbours or family members who have been targeted are urged to contact police on 999 in an emergency or 101 if the call is less urgent.

Operation Liberal

All forces in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are members of Operation Liberal. Operation Liberal supports national investigations into distraction burglaries and doorstep crime, and associated travelling criminality (please note that this should not be confused with the traveller community).

The unit identifies and analyse crime series and monitors intelligence on criminals and organised crime groups who travel throughout the UK to commit these crime types.

This collaborative approach solves more crimes and sends a message to the criminals who commit this type of crime that they will face a nationally co-ordinated investigation and as a result they can expect significant sentences.

Operation Liberal works with many partner agencies including Water UK, Energy UK, Trading Standards, Crime stoppers and the Home Office.

Victims of distraction burglary and rogue trading tend to be elderly and vulnerable and can suffer terribly both emotionally and physically after an offence.

1. The Trading Standards Wales website has guidance booklets available to download in their “Doorstep Crime” section. These are intended to give helpful advice to consumers, and are aligned with a common strapline “If in doubt keep them out.”

2. Welsh Government are supporting the Wales Doorstep crime campaign, which has a pivotal figure called “Iceman.” They have invested money to allow this campaign to develop, complemented by funding to facilitate the growth of Cold calling Control Zones. Again, more information about these zones can be found on the website,

3. For further information about Trading Standards in Wales, contact the following:

(I) Communications Lead Steve Jones at jsjsupport@hotmail.co.uk or 07926 155806

(ii) Regional Coordinator Sam Greenland at sjgreenland@hotmail.co.uk or 07545 479065