Telemarketer rudeness

[Arcade Man D]

Mr Hero, my 16 year old son gets those calls on his cell phone. He doesn't own a car, he is still learning how to drive.

We get those scam artist sending stuff to us about my car, which went out of warranty a long time ago.

I got one of those last week. Never got one again.

Maybe it was because I actually hit the button to speak to a rep, unloaded a mouthful of invective that'd make a sailor blush, repeatedly calling them scammers, before pointing out that I don't have a car, and hanging up.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

A few weeks ago I got a phone call at around 11 PM,

.

No legit company will ever call you at 11pm. Ever.

It's illegal for a company to call after 9pm.

[fireheart]

Easier for me, and less likely to run into a law suit....

Just ask them to hold on a minute and leave the phone near the speakers then play the 2 minute, looped MP3 recorded from a porn movie and grab a drink.

I'm in favour of that...or the llama song...

Naaman's idea (or a variation on it) sounds more like what I'd feel comfortable doing to phishers. Airhorns are nasty, whether or not you think the recipient deserves it.

Me? I'd opt for the looped "Song That Doesn't End."

I'm a bit half and half on that one. Alternately, banging pots and pans in the background could be an option...I think someone had it happen to them, as a good telemarketer though. Phishers? Pots and pans it is.

[jjllbb]

not long ago, I got several calls about wanting to extend my car's warranty.

Yep, they hit me too. I told them several times that i wasn't interested but they kept calling back until i hit the magic words "take me off of your calling list". it finally stopped after that.

[PepperElf]

Mom called me up the other day to tell me the bad news.... the warranty and credit scam companies had started calling her cell phone... so she was now paying to get their calls.

I thought about my own phone and ways to handle calls like that, and then I realized.... Um, I haven't been getting any of those calls, not for a while.

Then I remembered that I signed both the cell and skype numbers up for the Do Not Call list. So I sent the link to Mom.

https://www.donotcall.gov/

[Damien]

I had an unusual one a few months ago, but no less annoying...

A bit of background, I live in Tokyo, Japan - country code 81 and an area code of 3, which happens to be the same as a code for somewhere in Florida I believe (813)...

With the time difference, it meant they called me at 1am, 2am etc - so I was not a happy teacher...

But the idiotic thing was that the rep insisted that I was wrong and i lived in Florida...erm... I think I know where I live, ya dumbass.

after the 2nd hit, I noted the rep's name, and looked up the company on the internet (it was legit!), called them and made a formal complaint against this idiot.

IF it had beenjut the one time and he realised the mistake and that was it, there would have been no complaint... but this insistance and calling a 2nd time I refuse to tolerate.

Somthing my dad does, after he says no, if they continue or call again, the gloves are off - no if, buts of maybes.

As for the airhorn idea - that is really really a bad idea, and as Dips said, it is criminal - have had an airhorn blasted into my ear on the phone (as a 'joke' by some former 'friends') and let me say that I still have tinnitus and loss of balance - and they have a criminal record.

[ADoyle90815]

I've found that since I registered my cell phone number on the Do Not Call list, I haven't had any telemarketers of any kind call me. Now, I did have to block a number from some doctor's office because they couldn't understand what "wrong number" meant and that I didn't know the individual they were trying to reach.

[PepperElf]

I had an unusual one a few months ago, but no less annoying...

A bit of background, I live in Tokyo, Japan - country code 81 and an area code of 3, which happens to be the same as a code for somewhere in Florida I believe (813)...

Dang. I lived in Yokosuka for a while so I understand the issues... 14 hour time difference to EST in the winter, 13 hour difference in the summer.

But you'd think they would know the difference in dialing 813-xxx-xxxx and 81-xx-xxxx-xxxx assuming you're using a cell. Granted I know the landlines have shorter numbers but... Yeesh that company was not really using all of their brain cells.

And at the second call that's when you start yelling at them in Japanese...

I hope the company gave you a good response when you called however.

[Stormraven]

I am unfailingly polite on the phone, at first. But the first question I ask is almost always 'who's calling?', followed by 'and what is this regarding?'.

If they answer my questions, I will - again, politely - indicate that I'm not interested and that they should remove me from their list.

If, as has happened, they refuse to answer either of those questions, they lose all right to a polite response, and I will get increasingly rude to them as I see necessary. Most of the time, it's just a 'do not call this number again', then hang up, but if they're trying to argue with me - I've had that - it can get ugly.

[BethB]

We've had a few recorded telemarketers call us...at work. a few memorable ones:
-I qualify for $1 million for my business(does wally world really need another million)
-warranties expire on cars(for which worker)
-health insurance, life insurance
that's about all I can remember. we get at least 2 a week.

My brother got a telemarketer call and he just answered "(name) Moonpies!" and kept repeating it. Caller hung up and he "felt sad".

the most annoying was one called me at my job and wanted to set up a website for us at no cost and send out ads. I repeatedly told him we were a chain business and to not call. He kept calling back and demanded to know why I hung up on him and trying to intimidate me(did a good job because I was beginning to fear answering the phone). finally I called up a manager and told him what was up. he stopped calling that day but continued to harass my coworkers cuz he would ask for them by name(since we announce who we are when we answer) Not good times.

[Damien]

Dang. I lived in Yokosuka for a while so I understand the issues... 14 hour time difference to EST in the winter, 13 hour difference in the summer.

But you'd think they would know the difference in dialing 813-xxx-xxxx and 81-xx-xxxx-xxxx assuming you're using a cell. Granted I know the landlines have shorter numbers but... Yeesh that company was not really using all of their brain cells.

And at the second call that's when you start yelling at them in Japanese...

I hope the company gave you a good response when you called however.

ah, if only I had enough Japanese then to melt their walls... but yes, the company was extremely apologetic, even offered me some vouchers or whatnot - but I was not after compensation, just uninterrupted sleep - to which they granted.

[Kiwi]

Ive had 5-6 calls a day for the last week from various places out of california for godssake!!!

The phone is one of my triggers so its very very upsetting when someone rings for no reason. I can't unplug the fucking thing because its also our buildings intercom....I've just stopped answering the phone now.

I can't even tell them to block the number because they always ask for K and not me....

[PepperElf]

and what NOT to do to a telemarketer....

from http://www.fmylife.com/miscellaneous/1490808

Today, a telemarketer called for my dad. Jokingly, I said, "I haven't seen him for like five days...I'm starting to get worried," in my best child-like voice. Apparently the telemarketer called Child Protective Services. I'm 20. FML

[KellyHabersham]

What really bugs me about telemarketers (and collection agents, for that matter) is when they mumble into the phone - I had someone leave a message on my answering machine this morning, and all I could get out of what he said was something about "bank card", and that the first few digits of the number he left was "877". (Granted, I do have a hearing loss, but when I turn the volume on the answering machine up, and STILL can't make out what the other person was saying, I know it's not my hearing that's the problem)

[repsac]

With me getting ready to leave the country for a while to train with my new job, I picked up mom a nice cheap pay as you go phone.

Well, as SOON as I turned the thing on I start getting these strange calls for someone named "Shaniqua Johnson." The caller identifying themselves as "Riddle and Associates".

After a call or two of this, I decided to contact them at their number, only to have that fail. I did google the company and found out that they are notorious for calling on debts well past their statute of limitations, and were at one point BANNED by the FTC from collecting debts in some states due to illegal practices.

And this from a law firm?

Either way, after the third or fourth call, I contacted the Utah Attorney General's office (as one of the websites said) and asked what I should do. So they take my report, give me a specific number and say that should the company call again, I tell them not to call, and that the UAG's office (don't feel like typing it all out) was contacted about their illegal activities.

When they called back (the collection agency) I politely listened and then explained to them what I had done. The agent got rather angry with me about it, wanting proof; to which I gave him the number. That number happening to be a case number unique to my case against them. I swear I could hear him gulp when I finished with the number.

Whatever the case, they've not called back.