CONSUMER watchdogs have issued a warning about inviting salesmen into the home after a Colne couple were pressurized into buying double glazing they didn't want.

The Citizen came to the rescue of Wayne and Melanie Gowen when they found themselves stuck with a £1,200 contract for two doors

The double glazing company agreed to drop the contract after the Citizen intervened, but Wayne and Melanie are worried that others may fall foul of the same sale techniques.

They signed the contract just to get rid of a salesman who stayed two hours in their sitting room. Although they had a seven-day cooling-off period, they found it impossible to cancel.

Trading standards officers are now reminding people that if they ask salesmen to call, they do not have the same rights as they do when faced with door-to-door sellers.

Officer Jim Potts said: "People should be aware that there are fewer regulations covering contracts signed when the customer has invited the salesman to the house.

"There are more statutory rights, including cancellation rights, in cases involving cold-calling salesmen."

Wayne said: "Thanks to the Citizen we came out of this unscathed. I must admit I thought we would have to pay up.

"We kept asking the salesman to go, but he wouldn't. When we tried to cancel, we found we could only do it by post. We ended up going to the company's head office, but even then they wouldn't accept it."

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