How can I get this to stop?

[Nestof3]

Every day I get a call from "Rachel at card services" trying to lower my interest rate. They refuse to take me off the list. They hang up on me when I ask.

 

Why is this invasion of my privacy legal?

 

How can I get these daily calls to stop?

[Snow]

If they are calling your cell phone, you can have your cell provider block the number they call from.

 

Are you registered on the do not call list?

 

What happens when you demand information like the company name, to talk to a supervisor etc?

[KatieJ]

If they are calling your cell phone, you can have your cell provider block the number they call from.

 

Are you registered on the do not call list?

 

What happens when you demand information like the company name, to talk to a supervisor etc?

 

they hang up on you! Seriously, you barely get two words out and they hang up on you. They call from different numbers so it's hard to track them. I now have caller ID and I don't answer the phone.

[Dana]

Or you get told to "Go f@$k yourself."

I contacted the BBB after that but they can't do anything. Same with phone company...or they refused to do anything.

 

Best thing likely would be to complain to your congressional reps. They can do something...but probably won't....

[DianeW88]

If all they do is hang up, consider yourself lucky. They called me a b*tch. :glare: There's nothing you can do except not answer your phone. I contacted multiple agencies. They shrugged and told me to file a report. Now if I don't recognize a phone number, I don't pick up the phone.

[Element]

That company doesn't follow the rules so there's not a lot you can do about it. The calls don't stop when you let it go to voicemail repeatedly either. I spent almost 2 years answering and then immediately hanging up on any "unavailable" call. The calls finally stopped. Obviously, this approach won't work if you have loved ones who call sometimes from "unavailable" numbers, but I just took my chances. They had been bothering me daily for years.

 

ETA: I just remembered. The calls didn't always come up "unavailable." I actually did the answer-and-immediately-hang-up on *any* unknown area code number.

 

Here is a handy quote from a recent article:

In fact, if you answer a robo-call, it’s unwise to bother following any prompts the recording might offer to be taken off their calling list. Not only will this not work, but the prompts are used as a trick by telemarketing operations to find out if there’s a live person on the other end of the line. When frustrated people inadvertently confirm that for them, the robo-callers can bundle up lists of just those numbers and resell them, Bandy says. “They monetize those live numbers.”

This is why the FTC recommends just hanging up on robo-calls, or not picking up the phone in the first place. The less contact, the better.

Read more: http://moneyland.time.com/2012/09/27/why-those-annoying-robo-calls-from-rachel-arent-going-away-anytime-soon/#ixzz28Xc3b2Vt

 

Edited October 6, 2012 by Element

[Missouri Okie]

The ones I get are usually recordings. If I listen all the way through, often at the end they give you an opportunity to push "one" if you don't want to receive any more calls.

[stripe]

Or you get told to "Go f@$k yourself."

I contacted the BBB after that but they can't do anything. Same with phone company...or they refused to do anything.

 

If all they do is hang up, consider yourself lucky. They called me a b*tch. :glare:

 

yep, my husband asked the name of their credit card, and he was told "f--- you."

[stripe]

Or you get told to "Go f@$k yourself."

I contacted the BBB after that but they can't do anything. Same with phone company...or they refused to do anything.

 

If all they do is hang up, consider yourself lucky. They called me a b*tch. :glare:

 

yep, my husband asked the name of their credit card, and he was told "f--- you."

 

BetterBusiness Bureau is fairly teethless, I have learned.

[justasque]

As I understand it, you can't just say "please don't call me", or "don't call me again" or whatever.

 

You have to say the very specific magic words "PLEASE PUT ME ON YOUR 'DO NOT CALL' LIST". Do not say *anything else*. Just that. Do not respond to what they've said. (Do not say "I'm not interested but...", or "I am happy with my current x...") Just "Please put me on your 'do not call' list". It usually does the trick.

 

Also, put all of your phone numbers in the national do not call registry - click here.

 

The list expires now and again, so you have to re-do it every so often.

[stripe]

You have to say the very specific magic words "PLEASE PUT ME ON YOUR 'DO NOT CALL' LIST". Do not say *anything else*. Just that.

 

They hang up before you can say this, I think.

[*Michelle*]

Hmmm. I got a call from them the other day asking if I was interested in lowering my interest rate. I said sure and the rep got all excited and asked what my current balance was. I said, "zero." She hung up and I haven't been called back since.

 

Maybe that's the key.

[Jean in Newcastle]

We feel like Rachel is part of the family. She's been calling us for years. :glare: I tried a couple of times to press the number for a person and ask them to stop - they cussed me out too. We now have caller I.D. We just don't pick up for Rachel. She's now an estranged member of the family.:D

[DarlaS]

We feel like Rachel is part of the family. She's been calling us for years. :glare: I tried a couple of times to press the number for a person and ask them to stop - they cussed me out too. We now have caller I.D. We just don't pick up for Rachel. She's now an estranged member of the family.:D

 

:lol:

 

Rachel's on my $h*!list too. :glare:

[amyrobynne]

I get a couple calls a week. The first day I began homeschooling my mom had a mastectomy and I was waiting for a call to hear how she was. I went through to the guy that time and told him exactly how pissed off I was that I'd gotten that call. I don't swear but if ,y kids hadn't been in the room, I would have then. At least he hung on long enough that I got to hang up on him.

[klmama]

Rachel calls here, too. She used to bother me. A few years ago I asked to be taken off their call list, and they assured me they would. The next week I got another call, just from a different number. When I called to complain, the woman told me that it was from a different company and that lots of companies used the same recording. :lol: The state consumer protection people told me I could file a complaint, but that I shouldn't expect calls to stop because the company just moves their phone banks around the country so often. We'll go a few months without calls, and then... she's back calling every few days. So, now when Rachel calls, I just hang up. I decided to make a joke of it. I'm not going to waste my emotional energy on something I can't do anything about.

[mellifera33]

If there is not a real person immediately when I pick up the phone, I hang up. We're dropping our land line in favor of cell service only, but I've started getting robocalls on my cell too. :glare: I just registered it on the dnc registry.

[DianeW88]

The ones I get are usually recordings. If I listen all the way through, often at the end they give you an opportunity to push "one" if you don't want to receive any more calls.

 

As I understand it, you can't just say "please don't call me", or "don't call me again" or whatever.

 

You have to say the very specific magic words "PLEASE PUT ME ON YOUR 'DO NOT CALL' LIST". Do not say *anything else*. Just that. Do not respond to what they've said. (Do not say "I'm not interested but...", or "I am happy with my current x...") Just "Please put me on your 'do not call' list". It usually does the trick.

 

Also, put all of your phone numbers in the national do not call registry - click here.

 

The list expires now and again, so you have to re-do it every so often.

 

If you press #1, that is when they call you nasty names.

 

These people pay no attention WHATSOEVER to the "do not call" list. In fact, on a subsequent call, they told me I could shove the "do not call" list up my....:glare:.

[Nestof3]

If they are calling your cell phone, you can have your cell provider block the number they call from.

 

Are you registered on the do not call list?

 

What happens when you demand information like the company name, to talk to a supervisor etc?

 

I have already registered on the national do not call list.

 

I did submit a formal complaint on the same website after I posted here.

 

The person hangs up on me before I can finish talking.

 

It seems the FCC is trying to cut down on the robot calls, as they call them, but they depend on reports from consumers. :tongue_smilie:

[Nestof3]

As I understand it, you can't just say "please don't call me", or "don't call me again" or whatever.

 

You have to say the very specific magic words "PLEASE PUT ME ON YOUR 'DO NOT CALL' LIST". Do not say *anything else*. Just that. Do not respond to what they've said. (Do not say "I'm not interested but...", or "I am happy with my current x...") Just "Please put me on your 'do not call' list". It usually does the trick.

 

Also, put all of your phone numbers in the national do not call registry - click here.

 

The list expires now and again, so you have to re-do it every so often.

 

I am on the do not call list. They refuse to take you off the list.

[WishboneDawn]

The ones I get are usually recordings. If I listen all the way through, often at the end they give you an opportunity to push "one" if you don't want to receive any more calls.

 

See post #6.

[Ellie]

Don't answer the phone. They'll quit calling.

 

See if you can find out to whom the number actually belongs; if it's a legitimate company, and it's a member of the Better Business Bureau, file a complaint with the BBB.

[myfatherslily]

If they won't listen to you when you talk, then what on earth is their purpose for calling?! How bizarre!

 

My number is unlisted. I do not get sales or political calls ever. I occasionally get calls from a couple of the companies I currently do business with, and occasionally about local sheriff fundraiser things. I highly recommend having your number unlisted if you do not need to have it available.

[Nestof3]

If they won't listen to you when you talk, then what on earth is their purpose for calling?! How bizarre!

 

My number is unlisted. I do not get sales or political calls ever. I occasionally get calls from a couple of the companies I currently do business with, and occasionally about local sheriff fundraiser things. I highly recommend having your number unlisted if you do not need to have it available.

 

We used to, but we stopped paying for it. It really annoys me that we have to pay to get idiots to stop calling us.

[staceyobu]

Do companies actually make money off of telemarketers? I've never known anyone that wasn't just annoyed by it. Why do they continue doing it?

[Murphy101]

If they are calling your cell phone, you can have your cell provider block the number they call from.

 

Are you registered on the do not call list?

 

What happens when you demand information like the company name, to talk to a supervisor etc?

 

We do all of that, but our first line of defense is to simply refuse to answer. Thanks to the modern invention of caller id;)

 

And yeah, they will be horridly rude.

 

However, on those rare moments when they call right when dh needs a sick stress reliever, dh will totally screw with their heads leading them on and asking all kinds of crazy questions. :lol: cheap satisfying entertainment

[Night Elf]

We never answer calls we don't recognize. Calls flash on my tv screen so I don't even have to get up to look. I figure if it's someone important, they'll leave a message. Occasionally, I get a recorded message saved to my voicemail but I just delete it.

 

I've been getting more spam on my cell phone than on my land line.

[Jeannie in NJ]

for the last month or so I have been getting about 10 auto calls a day "to lower my electric bill". It is annoying.

[Catwoman]

I wish I had Rachel's home number. :glare:

 

The last time I got a call (from a live person who had called the evening before, and was very rude to me,) the woman asked for my husband and I cheerfully told her to just hold on for a minute and I'd get him for her.

 

And then I put down the phone and went back into the family room to watch some TV.

 

I have no idea how long she waited. :D

 

We haven't heard from her since then.

[blakereese]

they hang up on you! Seriously, you barely get two words out and they hang up on you. They call from different numbers so it's hard to track them. I now have caller ID and I don't answer the phone.

 

:iagree: They call every single day.

 

Between "card services" and the political calls, the phone is ringing all day. We have all but one ringer off.

[blakereese]

Don't answer the phone. They'll quit calling.

 

 

They call MORE if you don't answer. They will call several times in one day until you answer. Crazy.

 

You know who else does this? Big brothers and big sisters. We donated items to them once, and then they started to call all.the.time. I asked them not to call anymore, but we are still not off the list. I know I need to follow up with the BBB or whoever you do all this with, but I don't have the time. :glare:

 

We are probably going to get rid of our land line, but just haven't done it yet.

[Catwoman]

I know it's terribly politically incorrect, but years ago, my MIL kept getting calls from the Miracle Ear people, and they wouldn't give up, so one night I answered the phone... and I pretended to be hard of hearing. Every time the woman started to talk, I kept yelling, "WHAT??? CAN YOU SPEAK UP, PLEASE?" She finally hung up.

 

I only do stuff like that when the person seems mean right from the start, though. Most of the time, I try to be extra-nice to the callers, because I know it's a rotten job to have.

 

Sometimes it also helps to just keep asking, "Why?" -- no matter what they say. They seem to really hate that. :D

[Nestof3]

I am fed up! I was reading about selective call rejection and anonymous call rejection that my phone company offers. It is only bundled with a plan that would cost $20 more a month.

 

I'm really ready to just ditch the landline phone all together.

 

I have to pay $20 a month to get people to stop bothering me?

 

Oh, and don't get me started on charities. I am ready to stop giving to them as well.

 

In one day, I had zero real phone calls from people who have a real reason to call me.

 

I had:

someone selling home improvements

5 bogus phone calls

one KLove Christian radio station

one World Vision phone call

2 political calls

 

I hate all the junk mail and phone calls I get from charities. Honestly, if I wanted to be giving more money to you, I would.

[DianeW88]

If they won't listen to you when you talk, then what on earth is their purpose for calling?! How bizarre!

 

My number is unlisted. I do not get sales or political calls ever. I occasionally get calls from a couple of the companies I currently do business with, and occasionally about local sheriff fundraiser things. I highly recommend having your number unlisted if you do not need to have it available.

 

My phone number has been unlisted for 14 years...it doesn't matter. They are computer generated calls. The computer starts at 555 - 0000, then moves to 555 - 0001, etc. That's why NOT answering can help. The computer eventually flags it as a non-working number. Unfortunately, that can take awhile. :glare:

[Chris in VA]

I wish I had Rachel's home number. :glare:

 

The last time I got a call (from a live person who had called the evening before, and was very rude to me,) the woman asked for my husband and I cheerfully told her to just hold on for a minute and I'd get him for her.

 

And then I put down the phone and went back into the family room to watch some TV.

 

I have no idea how long she waited. :D

 

We haven't heard from her since then.

 

I am seriously cracking up here!

 

I've heard of people handing the phone to their toddlers...

 

A police whistle in the phone seems like a good idea....

[stripe]

Don't answer the phone. They'll quit calling.

 

 

No, the robot Rachel leaves a message.

 

 

The last time I got a call (from a live person who had called the evening before, and was very rude to me,) the woman asked for my husband and I cheerfully told her to just hold on for a minute and I'd get him for her.

 

 

A pollster called at 5:30 and asked for my husband by name. I told her he wasn't home. At 6:30 she called again. I informed her he still wasn't home and please stop calling. It was very obnoxious to call again so soon, I thought.

[justasque]

However, on those rare moments when they call right when dh needs a sick stress reliever, dh will totally screw with their heads leading them on and asking all kinds of crazy questions. :lol: cheap satisfying entertainment

 

As a college student working as a temp, I did telemarketing for exactly one day. It is a horrible job. The callers are caught in the middle. It is not the caller's fault that your number was on their list. They didn't write the annoying script. They know little or nothing about the company they are working for, or the product they are trying to sell. They are just trying to make an honest living. (The company they are working for may or may not be honest, but the workers are just serfs, in some cases sent by temp agencies, and as far as you know are decent people in a horrible job.)

 

The kindest thing you can do if you are not interested is to say "please put me on your do not call list" and hang up. Do not waste their time (even though their company has wasted yours). They get paid in part by how many sales they make - time spent talking to you if you are not interested hurts them, not so much the company.

 

Again, these folks are working hard to earn an honest living. It ain't easy out there nowadays. Show some grace; don't make it harder for them.

[stripe]

Again, these folks are working hard to earn an honest living. It ain't easy out there nowadays. Show some grace; don't make it harder for them.

 

These people swear at people when you complain and ask not to be called. I don't consider that working hard to make an honest living.

 

I once asked to be taken off the list, and the woman told me I had to press the option on the prompt and she couldn't do it.

 

My husband also got a call from a scam artist wanting him to send money, an advance on the millions that were soon to be delivered. He even finally admitted it was a scam, but wondered if my husband would send the money anyway?

[Carrie75]

We got rid of our landline and bluetooth our phones to our landline phones when we are home so we don't have to talk on the cell phone if we get or need to make a call. It's so nice not to get the solicitor calls anymore!

[amo_mea_filiis.]

My voicemail is silent. Iow, when you call me (on your end) it rings, goes silent, then a click instead of a beep. It has seriously cut down on unwanted voicemail.

 

I get calls for myself and 2 other people. A LOT for the 2 others. R.W. must be an older man, because i get all sorts of AARP calls, and i've had appointment reminders for him! B.D. Is another one and she must owe a lot of money to a lot of people, because i get more for her in a day than for myself in a week. In every single call, there are no people. A lot are hangups. All are weird unknown numbers.

 

I have my ringers off and just check the phone once in the morning, afternoon (in case i get a call so i can return before the day is over) and once before bed.

[Ellie]

No, the robot Rachel leaves a message.

I know, but it still keeps track of whether or not anyone answers. If you quit answering, the robot knows this. And you can still try to find the business and make a complaint and all that.

 

A pollster called at 5:30 and asked for my husband by name. I told her he wasn't home. At 6:30 she called again. I informed her he still wasn't home and please stop calling. It was very obnoxious to call again so soon, I thought.

Some people are just plain stupid. :glare:

 

Between being on the Do Not Call registry, and never answering the phone--we let the machine get it, unless we recognize the name/number--our junk calls have almost disappeared.

[Snow]

Sheesh! these stories are crazy! I don't get those calls fortunately. I wonder if it is because I never give out my number? Seems like every store wants to have your phone number to look up your rewards info if you forget your loyalty card (Babies and toys r us, motherhood maternity, the children's place, grocery stores), but I always just say that I prefer not to give it out.

[Ellie]

Sheesh! these stories are crazy! I don't get those calls fortunately. I wonder if it is because I never give out my number? Seems like every store wants to have your phone number to look up your rewards info if you forget your loyalty card (Babies and toys r us, motherhood maternity, the children's place, grocery stores), but I always just say that I prefer not to give it out.

You don't have to give out your number in order for sales people to find it on a list and call it. The Internert is helpful in oh, so many ways.:glare:

[stripe]

I know, but it still keeps track of whether or not anyone answers. If you quit answering, the robot knows this.

 

The robot knows whether it played its message at a human or a machine?

 

Does the robot swear at you if you swear at it?

 

This thread is fascinating.

[Tammyla]

Rachel called here this morning...again. I hang up, but it really annoys me that they continue to call.

 

I'm shocked they would curse people out, but I guess that's today for you.

 

I do like to push tons of buttons and then hang up just for fun.

Edited October 6, 2012 by Tammyla

[Denisemomof4]

I am so sick of these calls that I may get rid of our landline.

[kiana]

As a college student working as a temp, I did telemarketing for exactly one day. It is a horrible job. The callers are caught in the middle. It is not the caller's fault that your number was on their list. They didn't write the annoying script. They know little or nothing about the company they are working for, or the product they are trying to sell. They are just trying to make an honest living. (The company they are working for may or may not be honest, but the workers are just serfs, in some cases sent by temp agencies, and as far as you know are decent people in a horrible job.)

 

The kindest thing you can do if you are not interested is to say "please put me on your do not call list" and hang up. Do not waste their time (even though their company has wasted yours). They get paid in part by how many sales they make - time spent talking to you if you are not interested hurts them, not so much the company.

 

Again, these folks are working hard to earn an honest living. It ain't easy out there nowadays. Show some grace; don't make it harder for them.

 

This SPECIFIC company is either people who know **** well what the company's doing or people who are too stupid to be let out alone.

 

I'll concede that for most telemarketers it's true and usually I just say 'no thanks' and hang up.

 

And to answer the 'who actually gives them money' -- enough to make it worthwhile. The elderly and confused. The gullible. I know people who HAVE done this as well as people who've had their elderly relatives do this.

[Ellie]

Rachel called here this morning...again. I hang up, but it really annoys me that they continue to call.

 

I'm shocked they would curse people out, but I guess that's today for you.

Do not pick up the telephone. Let your answering machine/other device get it. When you pick up the telephone you only encourage them. S'riously.

[SunnyDays]

Rachel and her buddies have already called here twice today. So much for the Do Not Call list, we get a boatload from all sources. I never answer them. My DH will occasionally, to say to take us off the list, but it doesn't seem to help.

 

Between that and the swing-state political calls for the last few months, I never answer the phone unless I recognize the number anymore. My favorite new trick is people calling from a local cell phone, so you think it may be someone you know, but it's a telemarketer or political survey. Blah.

[Ellie]

Or you get told to "Go f@$k yourself."

I contacted the BBB after that but they can't do anything. Same with phone company...or they refused to do anything.

Last year, this company kept calling me...Portfolio Review, I think it was. I never answered. Eventually, the message said something about collecting a dept. :001_huh: So I found the company on the Internet, and it seemed to be a legitimate company, and a member of the BBB. I went to BBB on-line and filed a complaint. Within just a couple of days I got a reply from the company through BBB, which said they'd take my number off the "related file." I have no idea which "related file" that was, but I have not been called since then.

 

Maybe BBB can only be involved if the company is actually a member.

 

Oh, and the company I reported had had hundreds of complaints. :glare: