June 2008
The
Police and Trading Standards are issuing a joint warning to the public that
doorstep callers, who may be mistaken as working for a charity, have been
reported to be operating in the Dumbarton area and could be further afield.
A
Dumbarton woman reported that a man called at her door collecting for
“Rosebud”. She believes that she was given the impression that Rosebud is a
charity which helps children with cancer. It is, in fact, a private limited
company which can decide for itself how much of the money it collects, if any,
goes to charity. Rosebud is operated by someone who formerly ran the Moonbeams
charity for sick children which was accused of donating only £50,000 of the
£300,000 it collected to good causes. Rosebud “collectors” knock on the doors
of the unsuspecting public asking for £3 for a “newsletter” – it is in fact a
single sheet of paper with, for example, tips to avoid cancer such as “avoid
smoking”! It has been reported that the collectors keep £1 for every newsletter
they sell and the rest goes to an individual.
The
woman said “When the man called at my door I at first assumed that he was a
volunteer collector. I can’t say for sure that he used the word “charity” but
that was what was implied. He had a badge on which looked home-made to me. He
was a poor looking soul and I felt a little guilty in not giving him money but
something seemed not quite right”.
The
Police and Trading Standards are concerned that this operation is likely to
mislead the public into giving £3 for a worthless sheet of paper in the belief
it is a donation to assist children with cancer. As Rosebud is not a registered
charity there is nothing the Scottish charity regulator can do to stop them.
The
Police cannot stop canvassers or collectors going round the doors. If evidence
was obtained that they falsely claim to be a charity Trading Standards could
take steps to stop them but the collectors are trained not to use that word.
West Dunbartonshire’s Trading Standards would always advise the public
that there are many well-established charities doing excellent work which are
easy to find and will be only too pleased to take your donations.
At
present, Trading Standards and the Police are about to pilot a series of Cold
Calling Control Zones designed to discourage sellers of goods and services from
turning up uninvited at householders’ doors. Depending on the results, this
scheme may be rolled out to other parts of West
Dunbartonshire.
