Door-to-door scam

There's a scam that may be making renewed rounds in the area: People come to your door offering to give you a free demo of a vacuum or new floor cleaning technique they're marketing.

If you let them in, they'll case the inside for valuables to take when they return to burglarize your home.

Actually, this is not new. An acquaintance tells me he heard about this scam nearly four decades ago. And it's been done in other cities besides Yuma.

In any case, I know of several area residents who have been visited by so-called cleaners in recent weeks.

Officer Cruz Vidal, spokeswoman for Yuma police, urges residents to check out people who come to their doors: Do they have business licenses? What does the Better Business Bureau say about them?

It may be that the person who shows up at your door is reputable. But as former President Reagan used to say, “Trust but verify.”