Thursday 15th May 2025

Sussex Alerts - Eastbourne Police DOORSTEP CRIME - Not everyone is who they say they are.

DOORSTEP CRIME - Not everyone is who they say they are.

We have received a small number of reports across areas of the town, of males reporting to be offering property cleaning services, including ‘driveway power washing’, males provide an estimated cost to the homeowner, work is carried out, however the final amount is considerably higher than originally quoted.

Whilst many services are genuine, criminals can use these types of tactics as excuses to target elderly or vulnerable persons to enter homes to steal or charge inflated prices for unnecessary ‘repairs’ or ‘work’.

Please be wary of door to door traders.

Don't accept offers for house or garden work from unexpected visitors and never let someone pressure you into quick decisions about your home.

Operation Signature is the force campaign to identify and support vulnerable victims of fraud.

Scams are fraud and fraud is crime – report it.

Advice on fraud or scams.

If you, or someone you know might be vulnerable to fraud, please contact us on 101

For further advice and information please email Operation Signature.

Always remember:

Reporting crime, including fraud, is important. If you don’t tell the authorities, how do they know it’s happened and how can they do anything about it?

Remember that if you’re a victim of a scam or an attempted scam, however minor, there may be hundreds or thousands of others in a similar position. Your information may form part of one big jigsaw and be vital to completing the picture.