DOORSTEP salesmen have been bullying elderly Blackburn women into buying intercoms - by drilling holes in their front doors.

One man starts installing the £39 product - which police warned is poor quality - while another is still giving the sales pitch.

Police said this left the elderly victims feeling under pressure and afraid to ask them to stop.

In the past week, 10 intercoms have been installed, mainly in the Roe Lee area of the town.

In other cases, residents refused to pay - with the men leaving without repairing the holes in the door.

No contact number or address is left behind once the product has been installed.

Detective Constable Leo Cook, from Blackburn CID, said that he had concerns about the salesmen's actions, even though no criminal act had actually occurred.

He added: "We would like to inform elderly people not to feel under pressure to buy these devices.

"By drilling holes in the door before a sale has been agreed, the householders may feel under pressure to buy something they don't actually want."

He has passed the details to bosses at Blackburn with Darwen trading standards service who are now investigating.

Two white men are involved in selling the intercoms and are thought to be from Blackpool.

The first man carries out the sales patter. He was described by police as about 60, smartly dressed and wore an identification badge.

The other, who does the fitting, was said to be about 40 and has bleached blonde hair.