Yes, we do live in a lovely, quiet and generally safe area, but recently there have been a number of people in the Limpsfield area purportedly selling door-to-door or delivering leaflets who may not be as genuine as they claim.  There has also been a spate of crime in the wider Oxted area, including break-ins, car theft (from driveways) and burglaries.

You may have noticed, heard or read on local Facebook pages etc that there are several groups of individuals selling door-to-door at the moment. Some may be leafletting; others may be selling household items from duffel bags.  Some may be genuine. Others not so much.

A locksmith attending our own home last week following a burglary said that often these individuals may be working together.  They are collecting information on your house and your movements: When you’re in and out; whether you have an alarm or dogs; what sort of access there is around your house; what sort of doors, locks or windows you have.

It’s very important that we are all aware of this and remain vigilant and proactive when it comes to reporting suspicious behaviour and dealing with uninvited visitors to our doors.

The police advise the public to always check the ID and licence number of anyone coming to your door, and to never let any of these people into your home. If you have any door knockers in your area, call the local police on 101, so that they can conduct area searches and check these people out.

Anyone innocently and legitimately trading should be more than happy for any member of the public to call the company on their licence and check out their ID properly. If they are not happy with this, then it would suggest they are suspect.

Local constable, PC Annette Boss said:

“To sell at the door you need a licence. Anyone selling should show a copy of their licence (individual Pedlar’s Certificate or company trading licence) and ID.”

“We are aware (of door knockers) and have had intel on this in various areas,’’ she said. “Whenever we receive calls to state there are knockers in the area, we will deploy units to check this out. Often they are innocent and licenced, but it’s definitely worth a call to the police. We will always try to come out, because we’re keen to stop and check out door knockers, as unfortunately many are up to no good.”

• Be aware.
• Don’t be complacent.
• Always check ID and licence number.
• Never let anyone unknown into your house.
• Do not leave your windows or doors unlocked.
• Keep your garden gates, cars, garages and outbuildings locked at all times.
• Fit some form of security system if possible. This is really the one thing that will deter them. After all, they don’t want to get caught, so they will not take unnecessary chances.

Door knockers be gone! It would be great if we could stamp out this dodgy practise for good.

USEFUL INFO & CONTACTS

• LOCAL POLICE – 101,  EMERGENCY – 999.
• Surrey Police website
• Tandridge Beat Facebook Page with information on what’s going on in the area, public notices and warnings, news on results and arrests.
• In The Know – for Surrey and Sussex – reporting local crimes, missing persons, general dodginess etc.