Doorknockers and salespeople
Dealing unexpected visitors
Unless you are expecting somebody, the safest thing to do would be to ignore any visitors to your door.
If possible, peek out of your window or through a peephole on your door to see who is there. If you don’t recognise the person or you feel suspicious, then don’t answer.
It’s best to keep your doors locked at all times, even when you’re at home.
On occasions when you do answer the door, you should do the following:
- only open your door on the chain
- ask for photographic ID to prove that the knocker is who they claim to be
- ask plenty of questions
- don’t think twice about saying no and closing the door.
If the door knocking is constant, then please contact a member of your family or the police, using the non-emergency number 101.
Deterring cold callers
You can also buy a ‘no sales or cold callers’ sticker to put on your door, which can at least let some door knockers know you won’t answer.
'Problems' with your property
For salespeople, the key thing to remember is that if you really needed what they were offering, you would probably already know about the problem.
If you are genuinely concerned that something is wrong with your property, you can always call a reputable tradesperson to come and take a look at a later date.