Beware fake calendar scams
Warning issued after thief steals €1,200 from elderly people while posing as a fireman selling charity calendars
POLICE are warning the public to keep an eye out for fraudsters posing as calendar sellers during the festive season.
Several thefts in Chancelade, Périgueux and Chamiers have led to a total of €1,200 being stolen from elderly people in the Dordogne.
Police last week arrested a man posing as a fireman as he tried to sell a calendar to a 94-year-old woman. He will be tried in January for fraud, undeclared work and for stealing a motorcycle helmet.
The phenomenon is not limited to the Dordogne, but takes place across France each year.
The firebrigade (Sapeurs-pompiers), postal workers and street cleaners are the only groups authorised to sell calendars in public areas. (The latter are not allowed to do so in Paris).
The first two groups will do so in uniform, but the uniforms of street cleaners are easier to fake. Be sure that jackets have logos on them and are not just florescent vests.
Police recommend you ask visitors for an official carte professionnelle, and never invite them into your house. Avoid giving away personal details such as acknowledging you live alone, or vacate the house at Christmas.
The only certain way to avoid being scammed is to not buy such calenders, especially if you do not know what an official carte professionnelle looks like.
