To be annoyed by scam big issue sellers, and those behind this set up?

[Creambun2]

In my area of London a cohort of women sell the big issue, always outside waitrose stores. They rotate around different stores in the area on different days, so seller A will be at one store on Monday then move another on Tuesday to be replaced by B etc.

Several times I have seen these women using very recent iphones (and trying to be discrete about it) and I saw one last week being picked up by a man in a very new luxury car.

I think the big issue should be more aware of situations like this and try and prevent it? Aside from anything else I'm sure these women may be being exploited themselves.

would never buy that would rather give yo someone on the street

There is a big Issue seller outside our local Eurospar supermarket. I am guessing East European. Middle aged woman wearing a headscarf. Bought a magazine at Christmas and as it was Christmas I gave her £20 the next week going into the store she held out her hand with £2 in it and said she had no money for her lunch. Feeling I had been put on the spot I gave her £5. I now just ignore her. I have since heard that sellers are bussed in from a nearby town. I do support CAP by monthly direct debit

I don't give anything to anyone on the street including big issue sellers. Our local one seems to have been there years. She is a liver and has scammed a couple of my friends. She is also collected in a big smart car.

I give to homeless charities instead. I'm not keen on some aspects of The Salvation Army but around where I am they do an amazing job. I feel any money I give to them gets spent on the people who need it most. I think that's much better than giving to random people.

Its sad that big issue has been taken over like this

Salvation army do good work in our city.

Sleepygiraffe.

Do you not see that there's something odd about a man sitting in the street with a sign saying 'HUNGRY' refusing a sandwich, fruit, crisps and water?

There have been plenty of eye-witness accounts of organised Big Issue selling. They are meant to be self-employed individuals approved by the charity, not groups ferried around by someone directing their labour. For groups read gangs and the person in charge is a gangmaster.

Or do you really believe that exploitation of the charity by E.European professional scammers does not exist?

As people have said selling the big issue also allows sellers to access in work benefits which are then collected by gang masters. Though I think the rules are changing on this.

Piffle to it being our individual responsibility to report to the BI.

It's not my job to sort out systemic abuse in the Big Issue model! That I think they are well aware of..

I just head off to Salvation Army to donate.

It's sad that these people are preying on the kindness and generosity of others (who often have less than them) and put people off giving to genuine homeless people. So many of them are scammers these days. I would only donate to homeless hostels now.

I agree with you op. We have somebody doing this on our time, she’s always on the iPhone has better shoes than me and wears different ones all the time. The only people who give her cash are the very old or very young so clearly I’m not the only one suspicious

Funny how the virtuous people on this thread seem to have no problems with people being exploited.

After we upgraded, we gave away our phones to homeless people in Manchester not too long ago, because the internet is a trove of information and help they can receive and benefit from not to mention it can massively improve people’s lives knowing they aren’t alone and people care. I know people who do the same thing

As PP said above - he quite literally had a sign saying "Hungry".... It was a scam because what he wanted was money, not food, and if he was genuinely hungry, he wouldn't have refused the food, would he?

The rise in E.European sellers is not because of new immigrants taking time to get established. They are part of professional begging gangs. It is what they do. It's a lifetime career, not a stop-gap measure to survive. If they weren't selling Big Issues, they'd be begging, along with their children, around the cafes in the Edgware Rd or on the tube and now in the London suburbs. It happens all over Europe. Unfortunately, the Big Issue charity doesn't seem to have the guts to to tackle the problem which is tarnishing their brand.

Hear Hear