Ways to stop overseas sales calls discussion

[MSE Wendy]

This discussion relates to the 'Ways to stop overseas sales calls' in the Stop Junk Mail article.

Please click reply to discuss or to discuss other issues please use one of the following:

General Stop Junk Mail discussion
How to avoid nuisance calls

PLEASE REMEMBER: As annoying as calls are, at the end of the line are people just doing their job. Please don't suggest anything that could damage their hearing or is offensive.

[irisvwalls]

I have been registered with the Telephone Preference Service for many years, yet I still get calls from time to time trying to sell me mobile phones etc, and it is usually an Asian talking to me. Just how do they get hold of my number?

[knightstyle]

We are in France and on their "list orange" same as TPS but we still get calls from sales in other countries. Several from 0097.....
Don't think you can stop them. Tell them to wait a minute and put the phone down near a radio!!!!

[brightonman123]

Being Asian does no neccessarily mean they are from overseas..

just hang up.

[ariba10]

We have caller display and if it comes up international, we don't answer it.

The answer machine cuts in but they never leave a message.

[bonnieheather]

has anyone ever had the call from number ~ 000000
i would love to stop that one! :confused:

[spider125]

Originally Posted by bonnieheather

has anyone ever had the call from number ~ 000000
i would love to stop that one! :confused:

Who owns that number? I get calls at work and have to answer all calls as its a GP surgery we get about 4 calls per shift ! :confused:

[Youngy]

I regularly get calls from +91 9914000065 and other variants.

The other morning my mobile was ringing every couple of minutes at 6am. I answered and could hear it was a call centre but they just hung up. Then called again numerous times from a different number. Really annoying, +91 is for India so guessing its a call centre there

[coolchris]

Get a piece of kit called "CallBlocker". http://www.callblocker.co.uk/

It automatically answers the phone telling the caller that if they are sales etc, you are not interested. If, however, the caller has permission from yourself, then press "5". I find this a godsend as all the calls from overseas have virtually stopped. They occasionally still try but dont get through.

[MaddyT]

I have a very simple answer - when I receive a call and they ask for Mrs ****** (they obviously have my details from somewhere - everyone I know calls me by my first name) I simply say 'Mrs who? - No, I'm afraid you have the wrong number'.

If it's my bank or someone who I am happy to receive a call from they will either write or email me to follow up the fact they may have the wrong telephone number for me - that way I know it's legitimate.

I used to receive 2 or 3 calls a day - this is now down to 1 or 2 a week! This really works

[fuzzgun19]

I keep getting calls from some Debt management place.

I keep telling them I have no debts, and to take me off their list, but they carry on 1-2 times a week (Asian accent).
The number is 08448466524.

[GrumpyOldGits]

Originally Posted by coolchris

Get a piece of kit called "CallBlocker". w.cb.com Automatically answers the phone telling the caller that if they are sales etc, you are not interested. If, however, the caller has permission from yourself, then press "5". I find this a godsend as all the calls from overseas have virtually stopped. They occasionally still try but dont get through.

Actually what really gets to me is that we have to PAY, sometimes an astronomical amount of money, to STOP these idiots telephoning us.
These units you mention at £60. Ok if you have the money, but lots of us dont! That's part of our main reason for coming to websites like this!!!

Im on the TPS and its doing me no good at all. One that telephoned me from (so he said) SE Asia. Said he was a company called "UK today"
I asked for a number to call them back on and where they were based, and got a 'little bit of info' from him which I passed onto the Police in the end, because over the five minutes or so I spent on the line with him, he got progressively abusive to me.
It wont happen again though. Im going to start using the 'whistle technique' if they dont stop pretty soon... Burst a few eardrums...
Amazin' .. when I was younger I had loads of patience, that has all gone to pot now!!
I really am what it says on my username tin!

[headache5678]

I have received, so far, only a couple of calls from this number but at 5:50am. I guess it is a scam because 1471 advises that "there is normally a charge for calling this number".

Anyone heard of 08888 ?

[Careful75]

I have also received a number of silent calls from 08888 in the last fortnight. After searching the Internet, I conclude that they may have something to do with a UAE (Gulf State) scheme to allow prepaid calls. But whether it is a telecoms glitch which causes the calls I don't know. I tried to phone the number from a UK public call box, but BT said the number was not recognized.

[headache5678]

I also phoned the number from a call box today and I got the same BT message as you. You did better than me - my research was inconclusive as to what 08888 was.

I will post here if the calls persist or I get any more information.

If the number of silent / power dialer / "International" calls increases I will invest in one of those Call Blocker machines.

[bature]

I have had one call from 08888 at 0330hrs
Assuming the worst I quickly got out of bed before the answer machine kicked in but there was no reply to my "hello hello!"
If this is a premium number swindle there has to be a mental blockage somewhere!
Who wishes to get involved in anything over the phone other than a family emergency at 0330`/

[rockspie]

Hya

If you go on http://whocallsme.com/ then you can look up the number to see who it is!!

[chrisma232]

It's really annoying when the call centres ring and ring and keep hanging up.My sister had this with a catalogue recently and they kept it up.She eventually caught a time when they spoke and all they wanted was to know if she liked their service.

[davidlizard]

We let all calls go through to the answerphone so we can screen them before we bother to pick it up.

Anyone who knows us knows we do this, so will start talking before we pick the phone up. This also gives us the extra option as to whether we actually want to talk to them - my mother has a habit of phoning during the childrens bath time so that gets ignored, and the in-laws always call during the last few minutes of a match so that too gets ignored.

Most sales calls will simply hang up rather than talk to a machine.

We have found the TPS becoming more and more useless - there have been zero prosecutions and companies have wised up to this. Saying we are TPS usually gets the response "so what?".

[CashSaver]

I had to laugh at a call I had today from an Indian Call Centre. The guy told me he was calling on behalf of All Stop. When I asked him who they were - he said that they were the market leaders in stopping nuisance calls

I replied "Are you sure you're not the market leaders in making them." However, he just carried on with his script. I then asked if I bought the product, would it stop him from calling again. After persisting with his script again, I told him I already had a method..... CLICK.