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Neighbourhood Watch: Local Rogue Traders

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Incident in Bishops Stortford

On 21st February in Bishops Stortford, a lady answered her door to 2 males who said they were working in the area repairing guttering. They charged her £30 and then said they would also repair a hole in the roof. They have done something which the lady could not see and then they have told her she needs to pay a further £1100. She did not have the money and so the males called a taxi to take her to the bank. Luckily for the lady, the taxi driver noticed something was not right and contacted the Police. A description of the males and vehicle they were using was given to a unit who tracked them down and arrested the 2 males for fraud offences.

Similar incident in Watton-at-Stone

A resident of Watton at Stone has been a victim of rogue traders by giving over a £2000 deposit to males who never returned to carry out moss clearing.

The first story luckily had a positive ending, but this does not always happen. Be please vigilant. Police Advice: Never get work done by people who knock on your door. Also, keep an eye on elderly and vulnerable neighbours and family.

Police Contact Advice

Telephone 999 in an emergency where there is a danger to life or a crime is in progress. Telephone 101 for non-emergencies where police attendance is required, to report a crime or to report any other incidents. Calls to 101 have a fixed cost of 15p per call. Alternatively, visit www.herts.police.uk/contact to report a non-emergency crime online or chat to a police operator live via our web chat service. If you are calling about the above, please tell us that you are responding to a message from OWL Neighbourhood Watch.

Neighbourhood Watch: Keyless Vehicle Theft

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Advice for Owners of Keyless Vehicles

Hertfordshire Police frequently receive reports from Hertfordshire residents whose “keyless” vehicles have been stolen. If your vehicle uses a vicinity key, please follow the below advice. What is a vicinity key? A vicinity key operates the vehicle to which it belongs using an automatic signal. You only have to be near to the vehicle for it to detect the key is present and unlock. The key (or signal) only has to be present to enable you to press a button to turn on the engine.

Keyless theft: how it works

This is where a vehicle is stolen without the thief having physical access to the key. Thieves use a signal boosting device which picks up and boosts the signal detected from your vicinity key to the vehicle, making your vehicle think the key is nearby. You can see it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pffcngJJq0

Protect Your Vehicle:

Keep vicinity keys in a signal blocking pouch which stops the signal from your key. You can source Police approved ‘Secured By Design’ signal blocking pouches via: http://www.securedbydesign.com/?post_type=product\u0026s=signal+blocker or on www.owlprotect.uk on this page https://owlprotect.uk/defender-signal-blocker-pouch-keyless-car-entry-start.html

Keep keys away from the front of your property; upstairs and hidden away is preferable. Check your Manual or with your Dealer if it is possible to switch the key’s signal off. For additional security, consider purchasing a steering wheel lock. If your vehicle has an alarm or immobiliser, ensure these are enabled. If your vehicle doesn’t have a Tracker, consider fitting one. A dual band tracking device works on VHF/UHF and GPS to ensure that one tracking system can still function if criminals use GPS blocking techniques to avoid detection. Purchase devices to ‘Thatcham’ and ‘SBD’ approval. Vehicles equipped with tracking devices are often promptly recovered. Check regularly for software updates for the car.

Police Contact Advice:

Telephone 999 in an emergency where there is a danger to life or a crime is in progress. Telephone 101 for non-emergencies where police attendance is required, to report a crime or to report any other incidents. Calls to 101 have a fixed cost of 15p per call. Alternatively, visit www.herts.police.uk/contact to report a non-emergency crime online or chat to a police operator live via our web chat service. If you are calling about the above, please tell us that you are responding to a message from OWL Neighbourhood Watch.

Winter Update Newsletter 2019

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It’s been a fairly quiet Winter in terms of having no major issues to speak of. We have continued with our ongoing upkeep of the estate. The grass cutting won’t start until the Spring. We are currently organising repair for some damaged fences on the estate. Other matters you may not know about are listed below.

We Have Launched Our NEW Website!

We are very proud of the voluntary work done on the website. There are lots of new features including:

We have invited all residents to visit the website and use our easy notification service. You just need to enter your Name and Email address below and click “Subscribe”. You will be sent an opt-in email with a link to confirm. This means you won’t miss any future communication from us as our aim is to go paperless.

We also recommend you bookmark: https://www.leatclose.org.uk/ for future reference.

Security Lights Repeatedly Vandalised

The security lights in the residents car park (Garage Court 3) are constantly being vandalised. This matter is being taken very seriously and has been reported to the police. The police are keeping an eye on the situation as they have persons of interest in the area that may be linked. They also advised us to participate in the Neighbourhood Watch OWL scheme. (read the full article here)

Parking In Leat Close

The Leat Close Management Association Limited are responsible for the five car parks/garage courts in the estate. We don’t have any jurisdiction over the public highway, but we do encourage you to be courteous and considerate when parking. The turning bay is clearly marked with “No Parking” signs for good reason and is a matter for the Police by calling 101. (read the full article here)

Don’t Forget It’s The AGM on Tuesday 26th February at 7.30pm

Residents are all invited to attend the Leat Close Management Association Limited Annual General Meeting on Tuesday 26th February at Great St Mary’s Parish Hall, Sawbridgeworth commencing at 7.30pm. (read the full article here)

If you would like to contact us, please email: help@leatclose.org.uk

LCMA Update: Security Lights Repeatedly Vandalised

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The security lights in the residents car park (Garage Court 3 – see Leat Close map) keep getting vandalised. On the latest occurrence the power cable has been pulled out of the sensor. Previously the light has been smashed on several occasions and was placed higher up by our electrician to prevent this. This matter is being taken very seriously and has been reported to the police.

Lighting Is For Residents Safety

We installed security lighting as residents complained that the car park area was very dark at night.

The Cost To Us All

Every time we have to repair and replace items that are vandalised it has a cost to the residents of Leat Close. Professional contractors are not cheap and will bill their time accordingly. This cost has to be paid for and unfortunately it will be added to the yearly maintenance fee. So if you see anyone deliberately vandalising property in Leat Close, they are essentially costing you money. So please report them to us and/or report them directly to the police depending how serious it is. If you haven’t observed any vandalism in process, but you have noticed the resulting damage to Leat Close property then we would also like you to let us know.

If you haven’t observed any vandalism in process, but you have noticed the resulting damage to Leat Close property then we would also like you to let us know.

Resolving This Issue

We are currently looking at ways we can resolve this, and the possibilities of mounting the security lights on an adjacent property at a much higher location. The police are also keeping an eye on the situation as they have persons of interest in the area that may be linked. The officer we spoke to advised us to join the Neighbourhood Watch scheme which we have done.