Found the article here after they had left and I got suspicious.A fish merchant has recently been found to be making unsolicited calls on residents in the Portobello area. We are aware from subsequent investigations that this is not an isolated incident and there have been a number of reports across the UK.
The vendors are alleged to have been using high pressure sales techniques and charging inflated prices which have varied from between £8-00 to £12-00 for 400g of fish. Some bills have run to hundreds of pounds for one transaction.
The fish may have use-by dates which have been concealed or even removed, and the species of fish may be incorrect, for example Vietnamese catfish has been sold as monkfish in other parts of the country. It is also strongly suspected that the fish, which is sold as fresh, has been previously frozen and defrosted. Extensive enquiries so far have failed to identify a legitimate documented chain of supply for these products.
Councillor Sheila Gilmore, Executive Member for Community Safety and Housing, has said, "It is despicable that certain people are willing to take advantage of others in this manner, particularly those in vulnerable situations. There are trading standards in place aimed at combatting such reckless behaviour. Anyone who feels they are being taken advantage of should report this to the Council directly."
Anyone who has been or is approached by unknown individuals selling fish on the doorstep should immediately contact Environmental Health Officers in Services for Communities on 0131 529 3030.
It's a young guy with really short hair and an embroidered jacket - JB Fish or something like that.
They are well cagey about the price and want to get you to agree to buy it first.
His colleague is a short, older female with grey hair.
The price they quoted me when I finally got them to admit it was for a small freezer pack - 30 tiny trays of fish @ £6 a tray == £180!!!!
If you just say no, they do go - but they are high pressure as it says.
So glad I didn't buy anything!
