Calstock Parish Council, Cornwall Council and Community Energy Plus are warning residents in the Tamar Valley and surrounding areas to be on their guard following increasing reports of scam calls offering medical alert buttons and spray foam insulation.

Scammers, having obtained the names and contact information of elderly residents in the local area, are making increasing numbers of fraudulent calls claiming to be from Medical Alert Systems or Cornwall Council with deliberately misleading claims and quotes about medical equipment and unsuitable foam insulation products which could actually do more harm than good.

A resident from the Honicombe area of St Ann’s Chapel in her 70s, who did not wish to be named, reported to Calstock Parish Council that she and friends, who also live locally, had received calls this week from a telephone number associated with Medical Alert Systems, offering them medical alert buttons as they were vulnerable adults at risk of falls. Age UK, a charity for elderly people, subsequently flagged this as a scam.

Regarding spray foam insulation, one consumer in the area received numerous calls from a firm trying to sell them this insulation. In an attempt to worry the householder, the salesperson falsely claimed that the property didn’t meet ‘government standards’ for insulation. After stating that the work would cost around £8,000 the caller claimed that they could offer a ‘special discount’ and reduced the cost to £5,000. The work was agreed and carried out the very next day, however the property was a Victorian house and the treatment was completely unsuitable to the house’s design.

Gary Webster, fair trading team manager at Cornwall Council, said: ‘There have been recent examples of residents being cold called and offered spray foam insulation. Whilst the product itself can be a legitimate method of insulation, it is not suitable for every property. The foam only provides a stopgap solution and may cause problems in the long term. It can also cost ten times that of other measures.’

Between April 1 2021 and April 1 2022, the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline (the main route for reporting issues to Trading Standards) received 45 complaints relating to home insulation scams from consumers in South East Cornwall, the majority of which have been reported since the beginning of this year.

Community Energy Plus is a Cornish charity that provides free advice to people about energy efficiency. They are continuing to receive reports from residents who have been given the hard-sell for this insulation. Laura Tregonning, senior project manager at Community Energy Plus, said: ‘Careful advice should be sought before making a commitment. We’re Cornwall’s energy advice charity and would recommend that if anyone in the county is contacted by a company offering this measure, that they should be on their guard and contact us on 0800 954 1956 before signing anything or paying a deposit.’

To further protect against the risk of falling victim to such frauds, Cornwall Council has advised residents that there is no law stating homeowners will be fined if they do not make improvements to their home’s energy efficiency and to challenge unverified claims.