A reader of Kirkby Times, a pensioner, was cold called on the telephone by a company which stated that local tenants had Damp Problems and the company was in the area so would be checking up. The phone call sounded as if it was maybe a local organisation. The person called was under the impression that the service was free.

Yesterday, on the 2nd of Aug 2004, another cold caller phoned up in a follow up call and was told by the pensioner that they had changed there mind about a home visit. The caller then proceeded to complain about having been up 'till 3,00am sorting this out', the cold caller then called the pensioner 'an old bint'. The company was called 'CDS', but no local company is named as such. The 'cold caller' was not a Scouser, he sounded 'southern'.

Kirkby Times feels that this behaviour is totally unacceptable and that the company behind this owes the pensioner an apology and ought to be fined for employing dickheads. This is abusive language and for telephone operators to treat pensioners in this way is appalling. Calling an OAP an 'old bint' is ageist, and CDS, or whoever the company are, need to make sure that the people they employ do not abuse old aged pensioners.

Cold calling customers, by phone or by door, is bad enough, the salesmen and women are a bloody nuisance and if they have anything of value to sell they should either rent some premises to sell it from, or start a website up and sell there great product online. If you know of any pensioners etc who have been forced to sign up to damp proofing etc in the Kirkby Area - contact us.

Kirkby Times also questions whether this firm has been misleading local pensioners or vulnerable people with 'hard sell' tactics which perhaps make out this is a local service. If a worker can abuse pensioners due to a failed sale closure, then what other tactics do these people employ in trying to sell damp proofing?