Doorstep Peddlers

It has been on local social media that a doorstep peddler was aggresive and threatening in Allestree today. Such behaviour should be reported to the police.

Many in the Six Streets area have experienced pushy peddlers in the past selling household iterms from a bag on doorsteps. This can be intimidating.

There is no official scheme for ex offenders to work as peddlers door to door. There is no evidence that these are ex offenders. There is evidence of gangmasters organising the transport and selling goods to the peddlers.

Door to door peddlers in Derby need a licence from Derby city council with photo id in order to be legal. It is common for these doorstep callers to offer up grubby cardboard “IDs” with no photo. These are not valid. .

It is advisable not to engage, do not be rude but be firm and close your door quickly.

If you have vulnerable neighbours or relatives, you may wish to share the following information with them.

Online police advice is :

• Do not deal with these peddlers (commonly called Nottingham Knockers even when they have no connection to Nottingham).

• NEVER allow them into your home.

• Do not pay cash on the doorstep.

Be aware of these teams of people visiting your neighbourhood and report any such activity immediately to police. By doing this you may well prevent another person falling into the cycle of repeated visits and cash hand overs. They also say that the peddlers may be passing information on to burglars about people with cash at home or valuable items they see from the door.

Derbyshire Police online contact details are here