Warning over mobility aid sales

Some companies are using high-pressure and unlawful techniques to sell mobility aids to vulnerable customers, a consumer group has said.

Which? found companies were coercing elderly and unwell people into buying expensive and unsuitable products.

The watchdog secretly filmed sales representatives from 11 companies as they tried to sell adjustable beds, scooters and bath lifts to a 72-year-old undercover investigator and her husband, who she claimed was in hospital.

Six of the companies were chosen because of negative feedback from Which? members.

A panel of experts rated five sales representatives as poor and just one as good.

Which? said some of the companies used high-pressure sales tactics, with five offering a discount if the woman agreed to buy immediately.

One company offered to help the woman break the law by suggesting she could make a fraudulent insurance claim.

Other practices included offering free products such as a widescreen television or laptop to secure a sale.

Most of the sales representatives failed to carry out an acceptable assessment of the customer.

Just one company asked to see the husband before recommending a product while another recommended potentially unsafe equipment.

Share this article

Send this article to a friend »

• Del.icio.us
• Digg
• Reddit
• Facebook
• StumbleUpon

What are these?