Ernie Clark. Hilperton Division, Wiltshire Council.

It's rogue trader season ...

The Office of Fair Trading is warning that the summer is an opportune time for rogue traders, who travel around conning people out of their money.

Last year, advice service Consumer Direct received more than 5,300 complaints about traders offering home maintenance work on the doorstep, a 16 per cent rise from the previous year.

If in doubt, call Consumer Direct on 08454 040506 or visit their web site which also has some good advice on it.

The best advice is to simply say 'No' to any door step callers. There are also laws covering cooling-off periods and the need to give written quotes. However, if you simply give a firm 'No, thank you', followed by a threat to call the police if the caller doesn't leave, you would be safer!