Always councils, housing associations, and cold callers is it not? Tenants see it all, cold callers repair builders, and visits from the housing association. But trouble can start immediately if the person visiting has no ID. Where does this leave you if you have no water and a plumber with no ID do you let them in to do the job? Are you leaving yourself wide open and vulnerable? Let’s see more………..
As we stated, a builder turns up to fix something in your property and has no ID. You may feel you have a dilemma about what to do but don’t. NO, DON’T LET THEM IN ITS SIMPLE. Who are they, where are they from? Ok, it could be a sub-contractor but that’s not your problem. So, what’s the lowest common denominator, no ID no entry? It could be said you are taking a chance on who is this person is coming into my property. You could be vulnerable, a single parent, disabled, or just alone. NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, don’t let anyone in that has no ID. If also some salesperson comes to the door, ask for ID before communicating.
If you watch TV programs like Crimewatch, they say the same thing as the police, no ID no entry. Is it worth it taking a chance?
Try this example courtesy of Accent Housing Bradford. A tenant had a blowout of their water supply on Christmas morning at 2 am. The housing emergency line was called and nothing, but a suspected spam telephone number called back. At 9 am a call was made again, they said Ian Williams was on the way in 3 hours max and a plumber was sent. A dirty unsigned van turned up and a scruffy guy with a Santa hat knocked on their door. The tenant said hi, and he said I am the plumber. The tenant asked for ID the plumber had none. No sign written Ian Williams van is also filthy, with no uniform, and no photo ID. It is not rocket science to notice so many warning signs with that. The tenant was well punished for this, waiting 4 days for a repair.
So, it gets worse. The tenant made a telephone complaint against the plumber on the 25th of December 2023. The tenant explained to Scott that the plumber arrived No sign written Ian Williams van also in a filthy van, no uniform, and no photo ID. No this is a serious reply please read carefully. All Scott wanted to talk about was the tenant’s comment about the van and the plumber being scruffy with no uniform. He said the tenant’s comments were ridiculous the van being unsigned and dirty and the plumber’s scruffy appearance. The tenant said that’s not the point, what if someone got in and did harm to someone and even raped them. He did not want to discuss this he went back to talking about the van and clothing. The tenant challenged him again and he said (PLEASE READ THIS) The rape of a woman is hypothetical and there is no need to discuss this. He again wanted to talk about the plumber and the van.
The tenant contacted Alex Liburd a director of Accent to comment on this. Here is the excerpt: But the most serious thing is this. One of your staff members during a call wanted to talk about the guy that came on Christmas day and his trade van. He said ID cards did not matter and if someone gained entry and raped a woman it was just a hypothetical situation. Does Accent think rape of women is hypothetical and dangers to single mothers and mental health patients is hypothetical? Sadly Alex Liburd did not want to comment. Currently, INS has stepped in to join women’s activist groups to sort this out. Anyone who wants to join this campaign men or women, click the join us button on itsnotsimple.com choose activist, and mail us.
Ok, so we cannot leave this here, can we? There should be some sort of legislation to make contractors and sub-contractors of councils and housing associations to make ID compulsory. It’s no different from the GAS safety ID which is compulsory. A card printer is about £1000 and cards £1 each. There is no excuse. But are we going far enough?
For a little extra reading on this there is an interesting small article from West Yorkshire police about ID’s here at (https://www.westyorkshire.police.uk/ask-the-police/question/Q81).
We also think anyone who enters a home with or without kids should have a DBS/CRB check. Here is the definition: A basic DBS/CRB check is a criminal record check that you can request for yourself. You may also be asked to request a basic check from your employer. All this leads to the safety of the public, the vulnerable, and importantly children. We have decided to investigate this idea more to see where we can take it.
To conclude never let anyone in without ID. A good point is never to let anyone in ID or not if something does not seem right. Join us to work more on this subject.
Stay house-safe.
