Roger Posted July 3, 2015 Report Share Posted July 3, 2015 With the launch of the national campaign ‘Don’t be rushed, Don’t be hushed’ and Herefordshire’s trading standards focusing heavily on rouge traders and cold calling over the next 12 months, Herefordshire residents are asked to be vigilant. On Friday 26 June at Hereford Magistrates Court, in a case taken by Herefordshire Council’s trading standards service, 18 year old Sam Janes of Pontypool, Gwent pleaded guilty to three consumer protection offences. He was conditionally discharged for 12 months and was ordered to pay £745 towards costs and other financial penalties imposed. Janes deceived an elderly couple into paying a £250 deposit for tree and fencing work and then failed to return to undertake the job. He gave a false address on the receipt and his mobile number was disconnected so there was no way of contacting him. Fortunately the consumer had taken his van registration which was traced. After police contacted Mr Janes he quickly went back to the consumers’ property and trimmed the hedge while they were out. He then falsely claimed the only contract was for cutting the hedge. Janes had only been trading a few months as Evergreen Tree & Garden Services back in April 2015 when he committed the offences and told the court he is no longer trading. Mike Pigrem, head of trading standards & licensing said, “Rogue gardeners generally operate by ‘cold calling’ or by dropping flyers through your letter box. We are finding that it is a common way for rogue traders to make initial contact, especially at this time of year. The public should not respond to either forms of communication, as you are almost certainly going to be vastly overcharged for poor quality work and are likely not to be given any statutory ‘cooling off’ period. Inevitably they will do the work straight away and then disappear with your money. Consumers should only use reputable and trusted gardeners and qualified tree surgeons who can provide references before starting. Herefordshire Council has its own ‘Trader Register’ and we would recommend that you always visit this site first. The trader register can be found at:www.traderregister.org.uk/herefordshire We will continue to work in partnership with the police to tackle all forms of rogue trading to ensure that the most vulnerable within the county are protected.†Trading standards would encourage consumers to call our ‘rogue trader emergency line’ directly when a rogue trader incident is in progress on 01432 261761 or the police non-emergency number 101. Herefordshire Council Be alert to these time wasting cold callers' !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Posted July 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted July 3, 2015 Just noticed that this dodgy gardener, Sam Janes, likes the internet! He was featured by the BBC News website in 2010 (when he was 14) where he was promoting a website for 'young Gypsies', designed by 'Save The Children', that he said was going to enable people to 'learn more about us'. I think we just did! There is a Facebook profile available that seems to tick all the boxes ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ragwert Posted July 4, 2015 Report Share Posted July 4, 2015 There are a few still around (travellers) doing garden work this week.This is an attempt to do some close board fencing at one of my fathers elderly friends home this week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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