Doorstep sales

Giselle Williams, a solicitor in our Dispute Resolution team, acts as her mother’s attorney. Below she provides a moving account of some of the issues she has faced and offers some helpful advice for readers who may find themselves in a similar position.

On a good day my mother is great and most people wouldn’t know she has Alzheimer’s.  Unfortunately this has led to some sticky situations.  If you have found yourself in a similar situation, whether personally or in connection with a partner or relative, my story below may help.

Beware the doorstep seller…

There was a knock on the door early one morning at my mother’s house.  The gentleman showed his badge and asked about the state of her central heating. She said she didn’t think it worked very well because she was always cold and invited him in. An hour later, he went away with a signed contract for a new boiler and full central heating system for £3,500 plus VAT.

I rang my mother in the evening to see how she was and she said that had she met a nice man that day and he was so pleased with the cheque. Alarm bells started to ring…  ‘What cheque? What for?’  

I looked through the documents he’d left and saw the bottom line ‘£3,500 plus VAT’ with delivery the next day. I took the day off and so was there when the installers arrived.  Thankfully a manager was present and I was able to explain that my mother has Alzheimer’s so didn’t realise what she was signing and that that should have been evident to the salesman.  As a result the contract was invalid.  The manager accepted this.

I followed the incident up with a letter to the company, confirming that the contract had been cancelled and also making a complaint about the doorstep salesman.

Practical steps

In the first instance there are some practical things I do to try and avoid these situations, which happen regularly - a sign on the door saying ‘no doorstep sales’;  hiding pens so she can’t sign anything; making daily checks and collecting all post and any pieces of paper lying around.

Seek professional help

However, if you find yourself in a similar situation, you should contact a solicitor as soon as possible.  They may be able to help you recover any monies that you or your relative has paid out, or get any contracts that have been signed set aside.

Do you need a Lasting Power of Attorney?

Luckily I was able to cancel the boiler contract before it was too late, because my mother had made a Lasting Power of Attorney appointing me to deal with her affairs on her behalf.  If you or your relative don’t have an Enduring or Lasting Power of Attorney in place then perhaps now is the time to think about making one.  Stephen McCann and Caroline Pinney from our elderly client services team will happily meet with you or your relative at home if you wish.

For further information please contact Giselle Williams on 0161 234 8722 or gisellewilliams@georgedavies.co.uk or Caroline Pinney on 0161 234 8825 or carolinepinney@georgedavies.co.uk.