Nuisance phone calls

Janetew

My elderly disabled parents are getting up to 4 calls a day from a recorded message saying that they can help clear their debt. My Dad particularly is finding this very distressing and I don't know how to stop them.

They are with BT. I just wondered if anyone else has had such calls and knows how to stop them?

Many thanks in advance

t_vercetti

Hi, one way to block - or at the very least, greatly reduce - future marketing and other unwanted calls, is to register your telephone number with the Telephone Preference Service (www . tpsonline . org . uk). It's free and takes a short time to take effect, and I've found it effective since I registered my number a few years ago.

Also, this works well in tandem with the Caller Display facility, which you can get as part of the 'BT Privacy at Home' service (which is free and includes registry with the Telephone Preference Service). Caller Display will tell you if a call is withheld, international, from a payphone, mobile etc., showing the number also, unless it's withheld, of course. Just dial 150 from a BT line (or 0800 800 150) and ask BT to set it up for you.

With a Caller Display screen, you can either have it as a small box, which connects to your telephone and into the wall; or, as I have, you can have a telephone with a built-in display screen (I use a Binatone Concept Combo 2300), but there are many others out there to choose from. Logged calls will be stored in the display's memory until deleted too. And any good display can log 50 to 100 or more received calls.

Hope this helps.

ivinsp

ring 150 ask for "choose to refuse" free of charge for a month due to nuisance calls, you can then block the number from ringing them as long as it's not international

di3004

Hi there

We have been registered with TPS for a few years.

We receive nuisance phone calls regularly, but half of them are with-held, so we are unable to make a note of the call to report them to TPS.

For example this morning, I only have the one phone downstairs and when I was upstairs the phone rang and I did not make it to answer it, of course the answer machine kicked in.

This guy, not British was speaking to the machine, as if he did not understand it was a answer machine, where it states to leave a message after the tone (not my voice), and he said hello to it about 10 or more times and lastly said "Mrs XXXXX" are you there??

So I thought I would check on 1471, and no number left.

We get these regular and they can be a right pain in the backside.

Any suggestions here, cheers.;)

Heinz

di3004 wrote: »

This guy, not British was speaking to the machine, as if he did not understand it was a answer machine, where it states to leave a message after the tone (not my voice), and he said hello to it about 10 or more times and lastly said "Mrs XXXXX" are you there??

Any suggestions here, cheers.;)

Was the "Mrs. XXXX" name used correct?

The reason I ask is that banks, Doctors' surgeries, police stations, hospitals etc. withhold their numbers and so it may have been a genuine call.

di3004

Heinz wrote: »

Was the "Mrs. XXXX" name used correct?

The reason I ask is that banks, Doctors' surgeries, police stations, hospitals etc. withhold their numbers and so it may have been a genuine call.

Hi there

I understand there are two types of "Withheld"

"You were called today, but the caller witheld their number"

and a slow version.....

"You were called today, but we do not have the callers number to return the call"

Later on that evening it happened again, this time we answered it and it was a call on mobile sales, we said we were not interested and an hour later he called again and the following day, when checked it was again they were those of the 2nd "withheld message".
Everytime we told them we were not interested, but they just went on.

We do have the answermachine, and if not at home, if important we take it they would leave a message to make sure it was received, in order for us to call back.

But yes I do see your point.;)
Shame I did not make it on time that day to answer the phone, must get one installed upstairs as well.

My doctors number is not withheld, but am aware most are.

dizziblonde

I'm getting a tonne at the moment - for a Mrs White who I have no idea who the heck it is - and however many times I tell them (overseas call centre and a REALLY bad line as well) that there's no one called that here - they just call back two hours later. Been going on for months with a with-held or international number (I pay out for caller ID so I can pick out work calls from the junk ones) and they will not stop, and if you ask who the company is - they hang up so you're unable to complain. We're talking calls today at 11, 1pm, 6pm, 8pm and its like this most days (and weekends).

I rely on my phone for work purposes (I'm a supply teacher) so I really begrudge jumping to get to the phone thinking it's a work booking to be the same company again and again and again.

If I do get marketing calls and can place the company I complain endlessly to the TPS about them, and the ICO (I believe it is) if it's a recorded marketing call as we were plagued with them for a good few months or so - I think the phone number we were given when we moved house was quite a dirty one in terms of making it onto calling lists etc but seriously this latest bunch are driving me nuts with harassment.

macman

Worth identifying yourself as 'Mrs White' temporarily, maybe that way you can find out who they are?
Failing that, blow a whistle down the phone, that might make them less keen to hassle you.

Buzby

A clarification - there are not 'two' types of 'Withheld'. What you describes was (1) Withheld (2) No number available. The latter, usually where the caller is either abroad, or has created an invalid number string that cannoot be displayed by CLI.

di3004

Buzby wrote: »

A clarification - there are not 'two' types of 'Withheld'. What you describes was (1) Withheld (2) No number available. The latter, usually where the caller is either abroad, or has created an invalid number string that cannoot be displayed by CLI.

Hi there

Thanks for clarifying this.;)

So it was probably a call from abroad then?

I could not fully understand what the guy was saying, but it seems he went on about mobile phone deals, from what I could make out of it.