SC or no? I almost exploded.

[Captain Trips]

Yes, there are laws. If you are in the U.S. then I do know these: collections -- if you can prove harassment, and have filed with the FTC, the collections action is legally null and void -- that's the penalty applied to get collectors to stop their harassing policies. If you are getting repeated calls from sales drones, you have the right to ask them to remove you from their contact list -- and if they don't (and you can get some form of ID on them) you can file action against them through the FCC. But if it's a sales person that keeps calling, and you *may* wish to have them call back, they can call as often as they like. Legal, but definitely bad business practice -- it's a sure-fire way to LOSE a customer!

So, you were NOT a sucky customer -- they were sucky salesdrones!

[Tigress]

It could be the problem I used to have when my parents first separated and I stayed with my mom. I look and sometimes sound a lot younger than I am. So some people would just assume I was just being a recalcitrant kid and not letting them talk to my parents. Especially during the fiasco where my mom's insurance rejected my dad's medical claims (he was on her insurance and didn't realize that they didn't cover spouses that weren't living in the household). Since I often answered when they called, they simply would not believe that he didn't live there any more.

Funnily enough, I got a call from a mortgage company for one of my neighbors. The guy asked me to tell the neighbor to give them a buzz. I called them back to tell them that I live in a trailer park and don't talk to my neighbors much, so I didn't really know which one of them was the guy they were looking for.

[bainsidhe]

Hmm, I wonder if there was a glitch in their auto-dialer? Not trying to excuse their suckiness, but it may explain it. A few years back I was selling the local newspaper over the phone. On one particular night, we called the same poor guy again...and again...and again. Somehow I lucked out, though. I was like caller number 7 or 8 and the previous person he completely tore a new one. I made a point of being super apologetic and he was nice as pie to me. Because of laws and all that, my sup was frantically trying to figure out why we kept calling him and had to manually force him out of our system. He was beyond irritated, but at least he appreciated that we were trying to make an effort.

The fact that these people refused to listen when you said you 1) were being called multiple times and 2) already took a message and your mom would be back at x time, just makes them super sucky. Good post. Got me rankled and everything.

[gunsage]

I'm interested in seeing what any collectors say here, but this is my opinion on the matter. I have a good friend who is a former roommate that, unbeknownst to me at the time, had worked in collections for a little while (like maybe a few months). Now, I don't know if the laws differ on this from state to state or even continent to continent. In Ohio, if I understand this correctly...

- If they reach you, they are not allowed to call for the rest of the day. However, I believe they can call tomorrow if you did not set up any kind of a payment.
- If you did set up a payment or payment arrangements, I believe there are restrictions on when they can call you back, but I'm hazy on that one.
- If they don't reach you, they are allowed to call TWICE that day and no more. I don't know if the law has changed, but that's what it was the last time I checked. If they don't get you once, they can call one more time...and that's it.
- If you demand that they not call the number again or threaten harassment, they have to remove that number from the list. Again, I'm sure the laws have changed, but that's how I last remembered it.

That last one's especially important. My wife had collectors calling her pretty regularly, but I had the misfortune of feeling the brunt of it. Why? Well, up until about a year ago, I was working third shift. Therefore, I'd get home, help her out in the morning, and then...get all the calls, calls, CALLS. There were a number of them that I had the following exchange with...

Me: "Okay, I know you don't care and you're just trying to reach my wife, but what you need to understand is not only is this phone bill in my name alone but also I'M TRYING TO SLEEP."
Sucky Collection Officer: "Well, how do you recommend we contact her?"
Me: "Quite simply, when she gets home."

They don't like that because often she's out the door before 9 and gets home at about 7. And I understand there are requirements, etc., but come on...you're wasting your time and getting me PISSED OFF. Fortunately, I've never had the pleasure of threatening harassment and following through with it...but I've been very VERY close. Most people wake up when they hear that.

In summation, what they did was clearly harassment. If possible, I would contact your telephone company and pull phone records so as to aid you in your claim of harassment against them. Also, ditto on telling them you're recording their calls. Most collections officers will ask you to stop recording or simply hang up. Some will call your bluff and go on with their spiel, but so far, I'd say you have a good case against harassment, but I'd definitely check the local laws first.

[princess4life]

Last I checked you can call some one 3 times in a day before it is harrasment. It doesn't matter if they talk to anyone or not after the 3rd call if they call again that day it is harrasment.

[gunsage]

Yeah, that sounds about right. Again, I don't have the law in front of me. I'm also not really sure where to get it. If someone could post a link, that'd be wonderful.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

I HATE people who can't get the point.

Not to thread jack or anything, but for the last few months I've been getting calls from these home-based business people. I don't know HOW theygot my name and number since we're unlisted and the phone is under my mom's name, but they have called every day for the ast three months.
Every time they call I ask them to make a note on the account that I'm not interested in what they're offering and to please stop calling me.
Have they? Of course not.

If they are not local, report them to the FTC. There is a form on their website https://rn.ftc.gov/pls/dod/wsolcq$.startup

If they are local, report them to the FTC, then sue them. I'm sure we can all use free money. Sue them for 4 violations at 500 bucks each +court costs in a local magistrate court. I've successfully done it. You don't need a lawyer and court costs are only around 50 bucks or so. It's not hard to do, but if you are interested in doing this, start a paper trail. PM me if you want some pointers.

[LifeCarnie]

I would say it definitely constitutes harassment. Record the time of each call. Even collectors can only call a certain amount of times per day, I believe (Misanthropical, please correct me if I'm wrong).

Actually, it is against the law. Bill collectors are restricted from calling more than twice in a seven day period, according to US federal law. I was just informed of this fact by a letter from a law firm inviting me to take part in a class action law suit against a collection agency. The weird part is that this collection company and I had settled a few years ago, so the calls they made to me weren't recent.

The one exception is that a private financier, like Kay Jewelers, is not regulated by that law.

There are state laws which might restrict companies like that as well though.

My brother works in finance, he told me that there are a few companies who flaunt the law because no one does anything about it.

[Tito]

No, you were not a SC. You handled that a lot better than I would have. After the sixth call, I probably would have totally lost it with them. You took a message & told them that you would have your mother call back. What else did they expect?

[Becks]

You weren't an SC.

I would've been by the 4th call or so.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr to them.

[Chrono180]

I haven't had that problem, but my family has been getting repeated calls asking us to vote for (insert candidate here) We've been getting them 3-4 times a day, not as many as the OP but still enough to be annoying. Especially since its almost always either a recorded message or dead silence on the other end.

[gunsage]

Tell them you're voting for Turd Sandwich. Or maybe Giant Douche. You're not really sure. Chances are they won't get it...admist their confusion, hang up.

[unholypet]

If it's for the BGs, I hate you. =p

They're bad enough as is with all the tiny overcompensating penises running around the first two brackets. -.-

I doubt its linked on your server anyway =p What am I supposed to do until ZA comes out?

[Gravekeeper]

I doubt its linked on your server anyway =p What am I supposed to do until ZA comes out?

pvp at 70? -.-

Why ruin the game for new and low level players?

Sorry, derailing thread >.> But twinking really peeves me off.

( I'm on Whirlwind battlegroup on a side note. Where men are men and the Alliance is mainly a loose collection of chimpanzees that if I'm lucky will stop licking their own feces long enough to attempt to accomplish something in a battleground. )

[Eric the Grey]

pvp at 70? -.-

Why ruin the game for new and low level players?

Sorry, derailing thread >.> But twinking really peeves me off.

( I'm on Whirlwind battlegroup on a side note. Where men are men and the Alliance is mainly a loose collection of chimpanzees that if I'm lucky will stop licking their own feces long enough to attempt to accomplish something in a battleground. )

*whistles innocently*

I have to admit that I do this to some extent to my lowbies. Although I only have one level 60, and nothing beyond that.

Hopefully, I'll make 70 before the next expansion comes out.

To go back to the topic at hand (and keep this post on topic), if it were me, I would have probably torn into them, both the day they were calling, and after I found out why they were calling. I'd have made a point of calling them back and getting the highest-level manager I could get hold of and letting them have it. There is no excuse for that.

Edit: By the way, FYI, I'm on Staghelm.


Eric the Grey