Several reports on a Cyprus FB group about people being hassled by men trying to sell windscreen wipers at Papantoniou and Lidl (+ reports from Limassol) in recent days. Tactics vary from actually replacing the windscreen wipers on vehicles and owners then telling them to replace them with the originals, to following people to their vehicles and people resorting to threatening to contact the police in order to get them to leave them alone. A lot of women have been approached and some feel very uneasy about shopping in areas where this is happening. Some are reporting incidents to the shops as the incidents are taking place in the car parks, but no positive feedback from any Papantoniou or Lidl so far.
Bejay Browne is asking people ''If this has happened to you, please could you email me at [email protected] as I would like to speak to you- as I'm writing a piece for the Cyprus Mail next week to try and get it stopped! Thank you''
Windscreen Wiper 'salesmen' at Papantoniou and Lidl
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memory man
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Re: Windscreen Wiper 'salesmen' at Papantoniou and Lidl
Ah though Flossie if you leave your car outside at night in the summer often the windscreen is running with moisture when you return to it...I have used my windscreen wipers as the easiest way to clear the screen before driving away.
But previously I have been approached in Lidls car park by these wiper blade sellers. I just kept saying No in a tone that left them in no doubt that I wasn’t interested!
As soon as they saw another potential ‘victim ‘ coming they cleared off anyway!
Dee
But previously I have been approached in Lidls car park by these wiper blade sellers. I just kept saying No in a tone that left them in no doubt that I wasn’t interested!
As soon as they saw another potential ‘victim ‘ coming they cleared off anyway!
Dee
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GreenArmy12
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Re: Windscreen Wiper 'salesmen' at Papantoniou and Lidl
Happened to me yesterday in the main Papps in town. The guy actually took on wiper arm off the car to try and show me that it needed changing, had to be very firm to get him to put it back and leave us alone, could be intimidating for somebody on their own.
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memory man
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Re: Windscreen Wiper 'salesmen' at Papantoniou and Lidl
Could the police actually do anything in a private car park,
or does this fall into the remit of the supermarket security?
or does this fall into the remit of the supermarket security?
Re: Windscreen Wiper 'salesmen' at Papantoniou and Lidl
I would have thought they could. If you harass somebody, does it matter who owns the land you are on?
Web Designer / Developer. Currently working on Paphos Life.
Living in Polemi, Cyprus with my wife and daughter.
Living in Polemi, Cyprus with my wife and daughter.
Re: Windscreen Wiper 'salesmen' at Papantoniou and Lidl
Why not boycott Paps and Lidl until it is dealt with. There are alternatives.
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memory man
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Re: Windscreen Wiper 'salesmen' at Papantoniou and Lidl
Hostile pedlars targeting shoppers at supermarkets
Street sellers in Paphos’ main supermarket car parks are aggressively hassling shoppers to buy their products, mostly windscreen wipers, and seem to be targeting lone shoppers in particular.
In many recent cases, two, three or four men are homing in on shoppers with vehicles parked in car parks, removing windscreen wipers and forcibly trying to sell their product in a threatening manner.
Paphos resident, Madelaine Hampton told the Sunday Mail earlier this week that she was recently accosted in Papantonious car park in Chlorakas, Paphos.
“A man pulled my wipers off the windscreen and tried to change the blades for some very floppy rubber ones which he had a handful of. I was livid and told him to get lost,” she said. “He was persistent but I did see him off.”
A significant number of readers have contacted the Sunday Mail to complain that these groups of men have been targeting mostly foreign shoppers at branches of the largest supermarkets such as Lidl, Papantoniou and Sklavenitis.
Last week this reporter was harassed at the car park of the central branch of Lidl supermarket by two men. They were given short shrift, but then moved on to an elderly female driver, aggressively removing her wipers and trying to fit their own stock whilst standing in front of her car, blocking her path, so that she was unable to drive away.
Paphos police said they were aware of the problem and verbal complaints had been made to them to which they did respond.
“However no official complaints (written) have been lodged and we would advise supermarkets and shoppers to take this action, as these people are committing possible criminal offences,” Paphos police spokesman Nicos Tsappis, told the Sunday Mail.
Despite numerous attempts by the Sunday Mail to contact Lidl about the issue via social media, email and the customer service line, no representative was available to respond.
However, representatives from both Sklavenitis and Papantonious supermarkets confirmed that they were aware of the problem and would do their best to tackle it.
The manager of the Sklavenitis central Paphos branch, Markos Christides, said they took the harassment very seriously and would be contacting the store’s central office to see what extra security measures could be put in place. The branch currently doesn’t have a security guard, but he hopes to rectify this in the near future.
“I have also talked to the staff and told them to be careful not to let this sort of incident happen again and if they see such a thing, to immediately call the police.”
A spokeswoman for Papantoniou’s stores said: “We have called the police many times over this and now we will make an official complaint to them. We need some help to stop this from taking place and we will try very hard to stop this from happening again.”
One elderly resident spoke on condition of anonymity, as she is so shaken by her experience.
“I was trying to get my shopping in my car at Sklavenitis in Paphos last week and a group of men removed my windscreen wipers and would not put them back on. They were jostling and loud and I was rather frightened. They didn’t speak much English and they weren’t Cypriot. They wouldn’t move away and I had to lock myself in the car until a man came to my rescue and shouted at them so I could drive away.”
The pensioner quickly left the car park without her windscreen wipers and had to have new ones fitted at her garage.
“This is a terrible thing to be happening in Paphos, it’s bad for residents and tourists too and the supermarkets and the police must do something to stop it,” she said.
Paphos resident, Gary Dury, said that on Monday, two men operating out of a dilapidated brown van at the car park of Lidl’s store on the Tomb of the Kings Road, approached him as he exited his vehicle trying to sell him wiper blades for his car.
“Both men had a bunch of new wiper blades and one of them lifted the wiper arm of the passenger side of my car and said ‘your wiper blades need replacing’, I told him that they did not, he just repeated himself, at which point I then walked off and into the store,” he said.
When Dury came out, he saw the men were harassing other shoppers whilst they were getting out of their cars and catching people of guard.
Shoppers have also complained about being harassed outside the Paphos stores by beggars, in particular women, some with children and others playing an accordion, to try to get money.
“I have seen small groups of them being dropped off by nice looking cars,” said resident Dave Clayman.
https://cyprus-mail.com/2018/07/15/host ... ermarkets/
Street sellers in Paphos’ main supermarket car parks are aggressively hassling shoppers to buy their products, mostly windscreen wipers, and seem to be targeting lone shoppers in particular.
In many recent cases, two, three or four men are homing in on shoppers with vehicles parked in car parks, removing windscreen wipers and forcibly trying to sell their product in a threatening manner.
Paphos resident, Madelaine Hampton told the Sunday Mail earlier this week that she was recently accosted in Papantonious car park in Chlorakas, Paphos.
“A man pulled my wipers off the windscreen and tried to change the blades for some very floppy rubber ones which he had a handful of. I was livid and told him to get lost,” she said. “He was persistent but I did see him off.”
A significant number of readers have contacted the Sunday Mail to complain that these groups of men have been targeting mostly foreign shoppers at branches of the largest supermarkets such as Lidl, Papantoniou and Sklavenitis.
Last week this reporter was harassed at the car park of the central branch of Lidl supermarket by two men. They were given short shrift, but then moved on to an elderly female driver, aggressively removing her wipers and trying to fit their own stock whilst standing in front of her car, blocking her path, so that she was unable to drive away.
Paphos police said they were aware of the problem and verbal complaints had been made to them to which they did respond.
“However no official complaints (written) have been lodged and we would advise supermarkets and shoppers to take this action, as these people are committing possible criminal offences,” Paphos police spokesman Nicos Tsappis, told the Sunday Mail.
Despite numerous attempts by the Sunday Mail to contact Lidl about the issue via social media, email and the customer service line, no representative was available to respond.
However, representatives from both Sklavenitis and Papantonious supermarkets confirmed that they were aware of the problem and would do their best to tackle it.
The manager of the Sklavenitis central Paphos branch, Markos Christides, said they took the harassment very seriously and would be contacting the store’s central office to see what extra security measures could be put in place. The branch currently doesn’t have a security guard, but he hopes to rectify this in the near future.
“I have also talked to the staff and told them to be careful not to let this sort of incident happen again and if they see such a thing, to immediately call the police.”
A spokeswoman for Papantoniou’s stores said: “We have called the police many times over this and now we will make an official complaint to them. We need some help to stop this from taking place and we will try very hard to stop this from happening again.”
One elderly resident spoke on condition of anonymity, as she is so shaken by her experience.
“I was trying to get my shopping in my car at Sklavenitis in Paphos last week and a group of men removed my windscreen wipers and would not put them back on. They were jostling and loud and I was rather frightened. They didn’t speak much English and they weren’t Cypriot. They wouldn’t move away and I had to lock myself in the car until a man came to my rescue and shouted at them so I could drive away.”
The pensioner quickly left the car park without her windscreen wipers and had to have new ones fitted at her garage.
“This is a terrible thing to be happening in Paphos, it’s bad for residents and tourists too and the supermarkets and the police must do something to stop it,” she said.
Paphos resident, Gary Dury, said that on Monday, two men operating out of a dilapidated brown van at the car park of Lidl’s store on the Tomb of the Kings Road, approached him as he exited his vehicle trying to sell him wiper blades for his car.
“Both men had a bunch of new wiper blades and one of them lifted the wiper arm of the passenger side of my car and said ‘your wiper blades need replacing’, I told him that they did not, he just repeated himself, at which point I then walked off and into the store,” he said.
When Dury came out, he saw the men were harassing other shoppers whilst they were getting out of their cars and catching people of guard.
Shoppers have also complained about being harassed outside the Paphos stores by beggars, in particular women, some with children and others playing an accordion, to try to get money.
“I have seen small groups of them being dropped off by nice looking cars,” said resident Dave Clayman.
https://cyprus-mail.com/2018/07/15/host ... ermarkets/
