A CAMPAIGN has been set up to help householders deal with bogus callers.

Gateshead Housing Company, which manages 23,000 homes, has launched the No ID? No Way! campaign aimed at those who prey on the borough's most vulnerable residents.

Bogus callers who say they are working for the company have targeted a number of elderly residents in the area in recent months. Police are investigating several cases of theft arising from cold-callers.

Campaign postcards are being sent to all the company's homes, which contain numbers to ring and advice for concerned residents.

Chief executive Bill Fullen said: "Improvement or repair works are always identified by the customer or pre-arranged by ourselves, so people should be very wary of someone simply turning up on their doorstep to carry out work.

"All of our workers, our contractors and Gateshead Council's employees carry large identity cards, which they will always show before entering residents' homes.

"Customers can help by putting the No ID? No Way! signs on the inside of a window or door to show bogus callers that they are not welcome."

* The Northern Echo has been lobbying for an end to cold-callers and door-to-door sellers through its Doorstoppers campaign.