Help - Cold callers driving me mad!

Werdnal

I've been with TPS for 5 years now, and to start with it was great. Cold calls died to only the odd 1 or 2. But now all the big companies have shipped their call centres to India and beyond, I'm getting on average 3-4 a week again!

So far this week its been mobile phones, mortgages and loans! My mother has leukaemia and my father in law has a heart condition and we hate the phone ringing, especially evenings or like last weekend, interrupting our Saturday morning lie in, for fear its bad news.

TPS have confirmed they cannot stop international incoming calls, only monitor complaints (I've logged so many now they must have a file just for me) and warn persistent offenders. We thought about going Ex-D, but computer generated random numbers still get through.

Can we barr all incoming international calls or do these companies hide their identities to get around it?

I know BT offer various services, but we pay enough for our line/call charges now without giving them any more of our hard earned cash! Is there anything we can do to stop this intrusion into our privacy?

Thanks in advance for any advice before I go slowly mad!?!?!?

Pound

I don't think even BT will be able to help you. They offer choose to refuse to block by number and anonymous call barring. But the international call centres usually don't send a CLID and they're not considered "withheld" so neither of these solutions will stop them.

The only way I can think of is to buy a box you plug into your phone that plays a message to callers to tell them to hang up if they're a telemarketer or press 1. Genuine callers can then press 1 to get through to you. Telemarketers will probably hang up.

Nix

Don't really know if this would help but, we never get cold callers and I think part of the reason could possibly be that our phone number is only 5 digits long. I may be way off base here but it could be worth a try ie to change your number to a shorter number, if available.

Downside is that on occasion when registering on a website that requires your telephone number (ie when we went with 18866/1899), forms come up with an error message 'cos they're expecting a 6 digit number!

I suspect that even these random number generators are programmed to only do 6 digits too.

Worth a try?

Heinz

Nix wrote:

Don't really know if this would help but, we never get cold callers and I think part of the reason could possibly be that our phone number is only 5 digits long. I may be way off base here but it could be worth a try ie to change your number to a shorter number, if available.

I suspect that even these random number generators are programmed to only do 6 digits too.

How can a shorter number help?

If the computer tries to dial 01234567890 and your number is 0123456789, it'll connect to you.

The same would happen if the computer tries to dial 01234567891/2/3/4/5/6/7/8 or 9. In effect, your number would get 10 such calls instead of one.

Nix

Heinz wrote:

How can a shorter number help?

Like I said, our number is only 5 digits long and we don't get these type of cold calls.

Our town comprises of 5 and 6 digit telephone numbers. We have yet to get a call from someone who intended to add the 6th digit for someone else.

Like I said, if the number generators are programmed to dial 6 digits then you may miss them if yours is only 5.

Perhaps the BT exchange is geared to pause a pre-programmed time before connecting a 5 digit number, in case there is a 6th?

Like I said, I may be way off base here.

Like I didn't say, I could tap the knowledge of brother-in-law who works at BT if need be.

Only trying to help here, dude! :rolleyes:

moonrakerz

I have always been Ex directory but I do get a few unwanted calls nowadays. I have phones with caller display, if it's an 0800/0845/0870 number or it's a number I (or the phone) doesn't recognise, I just pick the phone up and put it back again.
If it is a genuine (non marketing) call they will ring back again almost immediately.

Nix

moonrakerz wrote:

...but I do get a few unwanted calls nowadays...

Those of you who still suffer these telemarketing calls might want to make use of this.

Turn the nuisance into a laugh!

iceicebaby

Get a phone with caller display. if u dont recognise the number dont answer.

Mrs_B_12

You can get caller display free if you're with BT and it will tell you if it's an international call. I don't get phonecalls from abroad apart from cold callers so I tend to pick up and leave the phone on the side for a couple of minutes. It does seem to get through to them after a while.

GaryS

Just ask the cold caller for their home phone number so that you can call back and annoy them when they are at home.

Usually gets rid of them a bit quick in my experience.

Heinz

Mrs_B wrote:

You can get caller display free if you're with BT and it will tell you if it's an international call. I don't get phonecalls from abroad apart from cold callers so I tend to pick up and leave the phone on the side for a couple of minutes. It does seem to get through to them after a while.

Better still, get an ordinary answering machine and, having recorded the screeching tones of a fax machine as your 'outgoing message', switch that on quickly whenever you see an incoming call from a number you don't recognise.

Rumour has it auto-diallers 'mark' calls answered with such tones as fax machines and don't dial them again. Human cold callers may even do the same.