DOOR-to-door sellers could be a front for back-door burglary thieves. And police have issued a special alert to Axminster residents.

DOOR-to-door sellers could be a front for back-door burglary thieves. And police have issued a special alert to Axminster residents.

They say the ploy of the dish-cloth salesman at the front door is often a distraction to enable an accomplice to break-in at the back of the property.

Sergeant Peter Trudgeon said: "If you get people selling at your door, things such as dish cloths, be very cautions when dealing with them.

"People should be licensed to sell, but a lot of them aren't. I would warn people against buying from them."

He warned that door-to-door salesmen tend to be pushy and charge higher than average prices for goods.