Warning issued over bogus caller in Whitstable

This afternoon there has been an incident at St James’ Gardens in Whitstable where a resident has been approached by two males pretending to be from our housing repairs contractor, Mears.

They told the resident they had been sent to carry out repairs and required payment upfront. A sum of money was handed over and an attempt made to go to a cashpoint to get more, which was unsuccessful.

The resident involved is being supported by their family and our officers and the incident has been reported to the police.

We would like to stress that all work carried out by Mears on our behalf is arranged and booked in, in advance.

Their staff will always carry ID and never show up unannounced. They will never ask for or demand a payment to be made by the tenant.

These rules apply to all our housing contractors, not just Mears.

Published: 16 June 2023