Nuisance calls from India

[bitsnknots]

The other day, we had a call from someone with an Asian accent but with the name, Lisa.  About half an hour ago, we had a phone call from what sounded like the same person but she was using the name Alison.  We are registered with TPS and we are ex-directory and we are just fed up with it now.  Just wondered how you dealt with nuisance calls.

There is a petition on the Government's website which is as follows.

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/54085

[captainbovine]

I had them all banned  on our old number but somehow they don't come here either, I assume it must have gone on the name not the number.

I agree though, they're a nuisance, and most of the time you can't understand them.

[chickengrandma-2008]

Calls from outside the country are not covered by the TPS and there's not much you can do about them.  Strangely enough we've had two  cold  calls this week from.  We don't usually get any, but as soon as I said I was on TPS they were both very polite, very apologetic and immediately said good bye and rang off.   Oh what a feeling of power!  

[carolyorkie2010]

We are ex-directory too but get these nuisance calls. Favourite at the moment is one telling me I have a problem with my computer. Also had the free electricity one and help with a new boiler. I tell the caller that I am not interested then hang up.

[stroppy*cow]

I just press the mute button and place the handset on the floor. When I get round to picking it up after 10 to 15 minutes they have usually gone. Let them run up a big phone bill if they choose, I don't have to listen to them.

If I am in a bad mood, I do have a very loud whistle (the acme thunderer), I find a few blasts from that straight into the microphone usually makes them go away. 

[****merlin*****]

people in call centres wear an earpiece, not on a phone, so they couldnt take it away quickly

fair enough a whistle  for a malicious caller, but not some poor sod trying to earn a living

i am ex directory, with the telephone preference service and still get the occasional one, and sure they are annoying, but not to the extent i would wish to hurt one whether i was in a bad mood or not 

[chickengrandma-2008]

Poor bloke's on the dole now 'cos he's gone deaf!  

[leoleoleo123]

I have an answer machine/caller dispay, and if i dont know the number, i dont answer...

close friends have my mobile number or can say to the answer phone, its me , pick up the phone! lol.

[guardpig]

Well I do not believe these time wasters should be allowed to cold call people who have no interest in their product and have specifically asked to be excluded from their calls.

If they are in the UK they have not done their job properly if they are phoning me in the first place so I am not at all inclined to be polite or pleasant to somebody whocannot be bothered to comply with the law when doing their job. OH on the other hand gets bored easily.  He had me in hysterics the other day when insisting that whilst he agreed with green energy he wanted a full size wind turbine in the back garden not solar panels on the roof.  The guy ended up promising us that not only would we save money, make money from the National grid but that the Government would pay us £1000.00 a year, every year from now onwards if we signed up NOW at once , OH requested details by post - strange they haven't arrived yet. Hmm

If they are phoning from abroad and I cannot understand their accent and I haven't requested a call why on earth should i be polite - they are wasting MY time and they are not paying me for it.

[kiss*my*pixel]

I have a couple of ploys, depending on my mood.

Sometimes I have a whistle, which I blow long and hard down the phone.

Other times I say I don't even have a computer, so don't know where they've got their information.

When I have time and don't need to use the phone, I just say "Oh, hang on a bit while I turn on my PC . . . . . . . .  and then leave them hanging on for ages, whilst I "turn on my PC". If I remember, I might even go back to the phone and say "oh, sorry, it's taking a while, are you still hanging on?"   

International calls can't be monitored by the TPS system, unfortunately.

You just hang up, or if your phone indicates an international call that you're not expecting, simply ignore it.

[rose2008-2008]

Had all nuisance calls including Indian people STOPPED,,,,then had my landline taken off as i hardly use it!!!!!!!!!!!!!. They should all be stopped this cold calling ringing of people.

[ed_blackadder_1]

Don't get any from this country, We are ex directory and with the TPS, but get a couple a week from foreign call centres, 99 times out of 100 they are scam calls well they wouldn't worry about legalities would they. The latest is the call from Alan at BT about my computer being slow - lucky guess I am with BT.  I just reply Oh you are the latest scam arn't you to which the line goes dead. Shame.

[stroppy*cow]

I get as many on my mobile as I do on the landline - no idea how they get hold of the number as it has a permanant conceal set on it, and I only give out my number to  family and very select freinds. No idea how they get the landline number either as it is ex-directory and again has a permanent conceal set on it. I never give out my home or mobile numbers when ordering goods online etc. - if they insist on a phone number I give the phone number for my "spare" mobile - the one that is never turned on as it is on ee and I can never get a signal.

[bitsnknots]

The other day, we had the one in which they said that there was a problem with the computer.  Needless to say, the call was terminated very quickly indeed.

[saasher2012]

I had one today on my private use mobile , not from abroad either, I told him that I was sorry but that I was in a meeting, he then asked when it was convenient to call back, I replied not during office hours. Hopefully he also only works during office hours. It was a no show number. I'm afraid I always answer in case it's the police trying to contact me, ie sheep escaped etc. can't see anyway round it really. But your right it is annoying!.

[cee-dee]

The way companies "get" your withheld number is that they don't "get" it at all.

What they do is to have random dialling and/or computer generated random dialling and for the latter, they could dial a 100 random numbers at once, the first to answer gets the call, the others get a silent call if they eventually answer.

A more sophisticated system has more reps able to take calls when the computer system dials out the random numbers.

[myraandjim]

have had quite a lot about my computer "problems" recently, today's actually said they were from Microsoft others have said they are Windows help desk. I am now asking them to quote my windows licence number to me "for security reasons" so far they have slammed the phone down every time.

A few months ago husband asked the caller to remove our details from their data base and not call us again, the nice Asian gentleman said "I will call you when ever I want and you can't stop me"  and then called every half hour for days!

One thing I have noticed though, if I ever have trouble with my BT broadband and have to ring them (at Indian call centre of course) then the nuisance calls increase - must just be coincidence????

[bitsnknots]

I'd never thought that ringing an organisation which had a call centre in India could lead to nuisance calls but I thing that it seems possible.