AN angry Chorley woman has complained after a visit from a window salesman left her with a £7 bill -- for a 'free' phone call!

Lorraine Alty says she made an appointment for a Weatherseal salesman to visit her home and talk about replacement doors.

But according to Lorraine, the company cost her money instead of saving it.

Lorraine, 35, explained: "The salesman came in at 7pm and went through what Weatherseal is all about, and about 8.30 he got down to the price of the doors. I said it was too much so he said he would ring his boss."

She said the man asked if he could use her phone to ring the company's freephone number. "He showed me the number so I had no reason to disbelieve him," she said. He handed her the phone so she could speak directly to his boss.

"He was on for 45 minutes," said Lorraine. "I had to make it sound like I was agreeing to what he said just to get rid of him."

But Lorraine was suspicious when she saw a car in the cul-de-sac outside and she noticed the driver had a mobile phone. She rang her phone company to check what number her visitor had rung.

To her horror she found she had a mysterious £7 bill for a call to a Cellnet mobile phone -- and there was no record of a call to a freephone number. She felt she had been conned. "Seven pounds is quite a lot. You feel like someone has taken something off you without you knowing," she said.

She rang Weatherseal to complain and was told it was quite normal for salesmen to use a customer's phone and that she should put her complaint in writing.

"I was really annoyed," she said. "I would like an apology. It's a really bad thing to do to people."

Terry Thomas, Weatherseal's sales and marketing director, based at Winsford, Cheshire, confirmed the sales rep had been brought to book over his actions. He said if Lorraine sends a copy of the phone bill to back up her complaint he will arrange reimbursement.