Police Scotland’s look-back at November in Kincardine and Mearns has been published.

ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOUR, VIOLENCE AND DISORDER:

There has been a slight decrease in the number of anti-social behaviour calls, with 41 incidents reported. Seventeen of these calls relate to youth specific calls, and 24 relate to other anti-social behaviour incidents including noise and neighbour issues.

There were 11 assault crime reports, an increase against the previous month. So far, four incidents have been detected, and reported to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) and seven are still being investigated with strong lines of enquiry.

There were no serious assaults reported.

ACQUISITIVE CRIME:

There have been no thefts reported.

ROAD SAFETY & ROAD CRIME:

No drivers found to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs. There were no reported incidents of careless or dangerous driving.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & REASSURANCE:

If travelling in severe winter, tune in to the Met Office information and Traffic Scotland for public transport announcements (0800 028 1414). Tell someone your destination, route and timings. Allow extra time. Fully charge your mobile and take a charger. Pack food and equipment. Think about winter tyres, a first aid kit, battery jump leads, torch, GPS, space blanket, reflective warning signs, ice scraper, shovel for snow, warm clothes, boots, warm drink in a flask – the list could be endless.

Identify key neighbours or family who may require assistance. Have their contact numbers to hand. Offer to collect groceries or other essential tasks. Help clear their icy / snow covered paths.

DRUG SEARCH WARRANTS:

One drug search warrant was executed within Stonehaven with a positive detection for controlled drugs.

CONTACT:

• 101 – Non emergency.
• Email – StonehavenLowerDeesideCPT@Scotland.pnn.police.uk
• Twitter – @NorthEPolice
• Facebook – www.Facebook.com/NorthEastPoliceDivision
• Web – www.scotland.police.uk
• 999 – Emergency.
• 0800 555 111 – Crimestoppers.

I have been checking up on the Stagecoach bus service in Chapelton as some doubts had been expressed to me about how and where people can catch the bus.

It has now been confirmed that Stagecoach have instructed their drivers to operate on a hail and ride basis until bus stop locations are fixed.

Meanwhile a temporary style bus stop is to be provided on Quarryline Street opposite Landale Court as this is the bus layover/turning point. A bus shelter will also be provided in due course outside Teacake.

Here are dates for your diaries if you would like to donate blood. Sessions are being held in April and July in the Bettridge Centre in the Coastal Park, Newtonhill. By the way, Greystone Place is simply the postal address!

North Kincardine Rural Community Council met tonight via Zoom, with potholes one of the key problems being discussed.

We heard that some of the rural roads are in dire need of attention. One suggestion put forward was that residents take direct action to fill potholes, however there were concerns that there could be public liability issues. Two roads in particular were causing concerns, at Altries and on the Netherley-Bridge of Muchalls road.

Community councillors had an interesting discussion about the merits or otherwise of the design of some house extensions. It is all a matter of taste!

The aftermath of Storm Arwen also prompted comment, particularly over the impact on mobile communications with transmitters going down. Meanwhile a landline will still work as long as the phone wires are still standing. However BT is switching is over to digital, and that will rule out using an old plug-in analogue phone. Progress maybe isn’t everything.

There was a warning about incidents in the rural area of doors being tried at 2am one night recently. Please lock your doors and be vigilant.

The next meeting is on Monday 17 January.

UPDATE 14 December: The potholes at Altries and all the way up to Muirskie were filled today by and Aberdeenshire Council Roads Service squad.

Kincardine and Mearns is set to receive £89,558.75 from the Coastal Communities Fund. The money comes from the Crown Estate’s marine licences for offshore wind farms, oil and gas pipelines and aquaculture leases.

Do you know of a project which is virtually ready to go, and all that’s needed is funding? Only constituted groups are eligible.

The award letter from the Scottish Government requests spend in 2021/22 which will be challenging given the timing of the notification. Aberdeenshire Council officers are exploring potential flexibility on this date with the Scottish Government with a view to allowing spend in 2022/23.

One of the key criteria is that the site of the project or the community is within one mile of the coastline. Projects must have a tangible link to the coast and/or the sea.

Examples of settlements that could be eligible are Findon, Portlethen, Newtonhill, Muchalls, Stonehaven, Catterline, Kinneff, Inverbervie, Gourdon, Johnshaven and St Cyrus.

Groups must provide a brief outline of any projects and likely costs that would help in deciding which projects can be supported. A report will then be prepared for Kincardine and Mearns Area Committee to allow councillors to have input into the disbursement of the funds.

Applications must be submitted by noon on Friday, 31 December 2021 to the K&M area project officer Diane Henderson.

I can send an application form if any group interested would like to send me a message (or email me at cllr.i.mollison@aberdeenshire.gov.uk).

The following new application in the North Kincardine ward can be viewed on the Aberdeenshire Council planning register:  https://upa.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/online-applications/.

APP/2021/2725
Date validated: 8 December 2021.
Site address: Home Bargains, Unit 1A, Muirend Road, Portlethen, AB12 4XP.
Applicant: T J Morris Ltd.
Advertisement consent for the installation of illuminated and non-illuminated signs on an existing building and installation of two illuminated signs on existing totems.
Public comment expiry date: 28 December 2021.

I have been in touch with council officers about the real-time bus timetable at the park and choose beside the Newtonhill flyover. It hadn’t been working for quite a while.

Officers tell me that: “The e-paper real-time passenger information display was fixed on Monday; they had to replace the solar controller.”

Here are some key updates from Aberdeenshire Council Roads Service about potholes, drainage work, and street lighting.

Council officers are in talks with Hunter Construction regarding a site commencement date for the road surface defect repairs in Portlethen/Newtonhill/Muchalls.

They were due to start this week, but have been delayed due to the effects of Storm Arwen elsewhere in the Shire. However, some road remedial works should be carried out in Newtonhill later this month.

Last month the service completed drainage maintenance works on Devenick Drive in Portlethen where footway surface water was posing a flood threat to one of the properties there. The drains are now working properly and the problem has been resolved.

This month, weather permitting, they will be addressing drainage issues on Monduff Road in Muchalls, where surface water is running off the public road on to a private road causing erosion damage.

The street lighting section is carrying out the design for new lighting columns, cable and ducting on Bruntland Road, Portlethen; from Bracken Road to Cookston Road. Once the design has been completed, they will tender a contract on Public Contracts Scotland with a planned start date in 2022 (likely a February start date).

Over the years there has been a series of leaks on the water main on Newtonhill Road in Newtonhill, all of which have been patched.

Scottish Water is now planning on installing a new water main on Newtonhill Road at the beginning of 2022. This could take up to 10 weeks to complete.

Therefore some advance notice of some traffic disruption. I guess there will be traffic lights.

Meanwhile, today (Friday 10 December) many houses in Newtonhill had their water supply disrupted for several hours after a mains fault on the A92, just north of the car sales office.

As we go into the Christmas period, it is not usual to learn of the increase in the number of puppies sold for Christmas presents for children or families.

Aberdeenshire Council’s Trading Standards service continues to receive reports from all across the country of puppies which have been bought by people and later found to be extremely ill, some having to be euthanized by a vet. As well as being heartbroken at the loss of the puppy, buyers have been left out of pocket, sometimes by over £2000 when the cost of the puppy and the cost of vet’s bills are included.

Further to previous articles on this matter, some other tell-tale signs of scammers posing as genuine breeders may be:
• Puppies being offered for sale on-line, often on sites whose names closely resembles reputable pet chain stores.
• All arrangements with the seller are conducted via a seller’s mobile phone number.
• Photos of the puppy (or of a puppy) are sent to the potential buyer via messaging apps. Sometimes the puppy in the photo is not the one the buyer receives.
• Transactions are conducted in cash only or by direct bank transfer.
• Vaccination cards may be from outwith the UK.
• Internet searches on the seller may shed some light on previous incidents.
• Irregularities on the paperwork such as the Vaccination Card such as signs of stickers having been removed or replaced, entries being overwritten, no vet details on the card or they are illegible.

The more of these signs a buyer sees, the louder the alarm bells should ring in their mind and the greater the reason they should turn and walk away. Reliable advice on how to buy a puppy more safely can be found at
https://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/getting-a-dog/

Aberdeenshire Trading Standards receive regular intelligence regarding the existence of puppy farms within Aberdeenshire and continue to try and tackle this criminality in co-operation with enforcement partners such as the Scottish SPCA.

Puppy farms will commonly transport puppies from the farms, usually in rural locations, to domestic premises, which is often an AirB&B rental, to give the impression that the puppy is home reared. Commonly the mother is either not available or another dog is held to be the mother. Tackling puppy farms remains a local priority for Aberdeenshire Trading Standards and we would welcome any intelligence on this despicable trade. Contact details are below.

SECTION 75 PROTECTION

Trading Standards regularly receive reports of residents who order goods from ‘traders’ which never arrive or are faulty or substandard. These can be ordered a number of ways such as via sales catalogues, social media or direct from the trader’s own website, amongst others.

Sometimes the trader stops responding to the resident’s messages or declares insolvency, leaving the resident at an impasse. This can be further complicated if the trader is based abroad.

Where goods or services cost more than £100 but less than £30,000 there can be advantages in paying for them using a credit card (though not a debit card or charge card). This is due to Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. The Section 75 advantages can apply even if you pay a deposit of less than £100 on goods or services totalling over £100 and may cover the total amount.

Section 75 provides that the credit card company can also be liable for the transaction, so that if the trader refuses to help, goes bust or is based abroad, the resident can make a claim against the credit and they can do so whilst still dealing with the trader. This done by getting in touch with the card provider to make the claim. Details of this would normally be on a paper statement or an email from the card provider.

It is also immaterial how the goods or services were ordered, whether over the phone, by e-mail or the internet, for delivery from one place in the UK to another or from abroad to the UK.

There may be situations where the resident may make payment to an agency which does not supply the goods or services and Section 75 might not apply so try to pay the trader direct wherever possible. Also, cash withdrawals on a credit card are not covered.

Trading Standards can offer guidance to anyone who finds themselves in such a situation. Contact details are below.

DISPOSABLE VAPES

Further to a previous article in Bulletin 34 about disposable vapes (ecigarettes), Aberdeenshire Council’s Trading Standards department has since started a programme of contacting all registered sellers of e-cigarettes in
Aberdeenshire with the aim of reviewing the types of disposable vapes being sold and offering retailers advice on what is and what is not legal. This programme is expected to continue well into 2022.

However, we are also aware that there have been reports of disposable vapes being sold by unregistered people, the vapes themselves being illegal or sales to under-age youngsters. We will be investigating these in due course.
If you have any information about the sales of disposable vapes which concerns you, please contact Trading Standards using the details below or if you are concerned about confidentiality, you can also contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where you can make a report in complete anonymity.

CONTACTS

For urgent Trading Standards matters, contact Aberdeenshire Council’s Trading Standards at 01467 537222. For non-urgent enquiries, please contact Consumer Advice Scotland at https://www.consumeradvice.scot/ or on 0808 164 6000.

Contact Police Scotland on 999 if you need urgent police assistance or 101 for non-urgent matters.

For more information about scams please visit Friends Against Scams at https://www.friendsagainstscams.org.uk/ or Take Five at https://takefivestopfraud.org.uk/