A 58-year-old man says he was pressured into spending S$345 for poor-quality durians by a salesman who appeared at his door.

He shared his experience in the hopes of raising awareness among the public to be cautious when encountering such situations and to not let themselves be taken advantage of.

According to Shin Min Daily News, the incident happened on May 25 at his home at Block 56 Geylang Bahru.

The man, surnamed Feng (transliterated from Mandarin), claimed that the seller, who appeared to be in his 30s, had knocked on his door at about 2pm with a bag of durians.

Only wanted to buy two durians but the salesman insisted he had to buy four

Feng said he was initially keen to buy some durians from the other party to satisfy his cravings.

He asked the seller if he had any bitter durians, and the seller replied yes but did not specify their type.

The seller also supposedly told him that the price of the durians was S$18 per kilogram — which Feng thought was reasonable.

However, when Feng said he only wanted two durians, the seller apparently told him he had to buy at least four and offered to also throw in an additional fruit for free.

Feng added:

"I was not keen but I could not convince the other party, so I had no choice but to agree. His movements were very quick; he opened one with a knife, but I could not taste it."

In addition, Feng said the seller only made a small opening on the durian and only displayed the fruit for a moment before putting it away — all while praising its quality repeatedly.

The seller then apparently opened three more durians, claimed that the weight of all four durians came up to 19.8 kg and asked Feng to make a payment of S$356.

Felt "forced" to buy the durians

Feng said the seller's actions made him feel he was being forced to purchase the durians.

He also claimed that the seller had chosen larger durians so that he could charge a higher price.

Feng added that when he asked the seller about his action, the seller replied that Feng had consented to the purchase.

The seller also allegedly attempted to lighten the atmosphere by giving Feng a durian for free and reducing the price to S$345.

Feng said he was "extremely dissatisfied", but let the seller leave upon paying the money.

However, upon tasting the five durians, he said he found them "difficult to eat" and said they were not worth the price he had paid.

Seller was unmoved when he confronted him

Feng added that he went to look for the seller to confront him, but the other party maintained that the quality of his durians were top-notch.

Feng also alleged that when he threatened to call the police, the seller remained unafraid.

He told Shin Min:

"I actually didn't want the matter to escalate plus I had other things to do that day. So I stopped arguing with him."

Feng added:

"I understand it's not easy for him to make money in business. But not only is he dishonest, the quality of the durians are so bad I can't stand it."

Previously, residents had complained about a vendor who was selling ice cream from door to door

Shin Min previously reported that a man had been selling ice cream from door to door at a HDB estate in Yishun.

At that time, some residents decided to complain online after feeling that his actions were inappropriate.

In response to media queries during that incident, the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) replied that under the Environmental Public Health Act, it is illegal for hawkers to sell food from door-to-door without a licence.

First time offenders can face a fine of up to S$5,000.

Should the public encounter vendors in violation of such regulations, they can make a report at the SFA website.

Top photos via Shin Min Daily News