Even after the City of Oakley strengthened its “Solicitor Ordinance” in October, it appears a growing number of Oakley residents are getting unwanted knocks at the door over the past few days from suspicious persons claiming to be selling something.
On Monday, an Oakley resident near Ironhouse Elementary School informed us that a she received a knock on the door from a male and female who stated they saw her Vivint sign and wanted to know about her service.
After some back and forth, they said they work for the company that makes the equipment that Vivint uses and that every three years they need to upgrade. They claim they are the people to speak with to ensure the upgrade gets performed.
“They said it’s like when you buy a washer and it needs repair you don’t go back to where you bought if from but to the manufacture. It seems a little fishy so I stared asking question. I asked for a business card and they said they didn’t have one. They were wearing badges and I asked to see it and they cut me off and left,” said the resident.
She immediately called the alarm company for verification who explained the two people at her door were providing false claims and information. Any upgrades would be done directly through Vivint.
According to the resident, when she asked for a card, his name and to see the badge he was wearing, he said thank you for your time and started to walk way.The resident stated that Vivint verified the two subjects do not work for them and that they do not contract out with anyone.
On Tuesday, another Oakley resident on Sequoia Dr. near Cypress stated he received a knock on the door from people claiming to be from Comcast. Neither person had ID badges or ID and when asked to see them the two took off.
Other residents have reached out to us with similar stories which highlight soliciting has returned to Oakley for the holiday season. This is important to be on alert because when someone knocks on a door and no one answers, its been linked to crime–police suggest making sure the person at the door hears something so they move on.
Kicker: Oakley has not issued a single Solicitor Permit
Oakley residents can fight back as the City actually does have an ordinance on the books which is Municipal Code, Section 5.5302-322 which explains the regulation within the City. In October, the city beefed up the rules by limiting solicitors to operate between the hours of 10:00 am to 5:00 pm and its not legal to solicit at any other time.
The kicker is that for anyone to solicit in Oakley, they have to register with the City of Oakley where at that point, they would be given a badge to easily identify the person, the company, and timeline it’s approved for.
According to Oakley City Manager Bryan Montgomery no company or person has filed for a solicitor permit and no permit has been issued as of Tuesday. To his knowledge, there has not been a citation or arrest—he explained they usually just run them off.
Oakley residents can contact Oakley Code Enforcement during business hours at 625-7000 or Oakley PD at anytime at 625-8060 regarding unwanted solicitors.
9 comments
Knock here, I’m ready
Call code enforcement? That’s ridiculous, call PD. if PD won’t respond then we have a more serious problem. PD is in a position to see if they are legit or not and code enforcement will get to it when they have time. I have asked code enforcement to come out when it was during their working hours and could not get it to happen.
I agree. Even in Antioch we are having these. Ours was from a gas company similar to pg&e.. Again, no ID. But to call code enforcement to help in a situation you need the police is silly.
OMG! I knew it! Wondering if I should file a report with police department? Does anyone know?
Absolutely.
Anyone have a description of the subjects????
Come on, let’s not beat around the bush and describe their enthnicity / description without guilt of political correctness. Unless … of … course… you are cowards.
With my ad running next to this article, it makes me appear that I am the culprit! Too funny….er, I am not …
Our neighborhood in Antioch has also been experiencing a lot of door-to-door soliciting, and many of these people seem to be described as “aggressive.” We have the means to alert the entire neighborhood at once, and we are sharing the information with each other. We are watching for strange vehicles, people in places they shouldn’t be, and yes, we can send images to each house as well. We know the numbers to call.
That’s awesome Glinda. You and your neighbors are keeping in touch and not putting up with the BS these hoodlums are running in our neighborhood.
Keep up the good work and they will get the hint that your neighborhood will not put up with it.
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