What is it with charity cold-callers?

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  • WilkieWilkie ✭✭✭

    I sorted out the cold callers - I got rid of my land line!  image

    Not that I had that many anyway, the TPS system worked for me.

    The only sales calls I got were from BT, abusing their position as my phone provider.  I told them very firmly to stop, and they did.

  • I've had a few annoying ones recently purporting to be from companies who I do have an account with.

     Them: Hello, I'm calling from Company X regarding your account.

    Me: Hello.

    Them: Before I continue I need to confirm some security details. Could you give me your date of birth, please.

    Me: Ummm... you called me? Why do I need to give you my date of birth?

    Them: For security.

    Me: But I don't know who you are. I didn't phone you, you phoned me. How do I know you're really from Company X?

    Them: We need it for security.

    Me: Well, from the point of view of my security, I don't want to give it to you.

    Them: (baffled silence)

    I mean, they probably were genuinely from the company. But how am I supposed to know that when someone phones out of the blue asking for my personal data?

  • leave the answerphone on - any genuine caller will leave a message, cold-callers won't.........


    I have had fun recently at the office with cold callers from boiler houses in the US tryin to sell me their share dealing services......I just counteract everything they say.........they get so frustrated and flustered they usually hang up. "have a nice day now" image


    sheri - those calls are often genuine and they will usually give you a number to call them on to check. they're quite often related to unusual amounts on credit cards, or buying stuff from overseas on it. but I agree - they don't help themselves
  • FB - yeah, I know, they are probably genuine. But what got me was the apparent complete inability of the other person to comprehend that I might not want to give out personal details to someone on the phone when I had no way of knowing if they were who they claimed to be. They should've offered me a number to call back on, but they didn't... I think this has happened twice now (different companies).

    The other one was a call my husband took, supposedly from a security company offering deals on burglar alarms and asking if we already had one! I was flapping my arms at him frantically as he told this complete stranger "no, no, we don't have any burglar alarms, no, our house is completely unprotected".... perhaps I just have too suspicious a mind.

    I think they were genuine as they were actually quite pushy about selling us one after having been told we didn't have one. But still.

    And we ARE signed up to TPS but still get cold calls.

  • Yes, we usually leave the answerphone on, we tell people we know to leave a message and we will pick up if we're there.

    I am on TPS but we still get the odd annoying cold caller. I have done the leaving the receiver and letting them talk thing. Lots of fun! image

  • Sheri12 wrote (see)

    I've had a few annoying ones recently purporting to be from companies who I do have an account with.

     Them: Hello, I'm calling from Company X regarding your account.

    Me: Hello.

    Them: Before I continue I need to confirm some security details. Could you give me your date of birth, please.

    Me: Ummm... you called me? Why do I need to give you my date of birth?

    Them: For security.

    Me: But I don't know who you are. I didn't phone you, you phoned me. How do I know you're really from Company X?

    Them: We need it for security.

    Me: Well, from the point of view of my security, I don't want to give it to you.

    Them: (baffled silence)

    I mean, they probably were genuinely from the company. But how am I supposed to know that when someone phones out of the blue asking for my personal data?

    we get that call all the time from our bank

    hello we are from *insert bank*

    can you tell me all your security details

    pppppffffftttt

    erm

    no

    feck off!

  • Had a guy appear at the door one night telling me that

    "I was paying too much for my gas and he could help me cos he was from someone else"

    Asked him how he knew I was paying too much ?

    Cos He said he had all my details....

    I asked him how ?

    We just have he replied....

    I picked up the phone and started pressing numbers (my own number !)

    Who are you calling ? 

    The police, Cos you claim to have my personal details !

    Then took a photo of him with my mobile phone....

    He couldn't get his boss from down the street quick enough !

    His boss pointed out that they dont really have my details, They are just guessing that I have neve changed the original supplier.

    Took his photo and pointed out that his chap had been telling lies.....

    The pair of them almost ran down the street collecting another 4 or 5 of thier mates as they went.

    Haven't seen anyone since

  • nice one DtS......

  • I had some junk mail from O2 on Saturday, it contained (wait for it)

    A bar of Green and Blacks milk chocolate image
  • I hate the ones pretending to be sky about the warranty...they have anumber so that they can not be blocked but you can't get back onto it...........who can you complain to to stop them calling and being abusive they make up things on the phone and when I told him not to phone back he threatened that he would phone tonight and keep on phoning until he spoke to my husband.I said that I didn't have a husband and he said that he would keep on ringing

    there should be somewhere where you can complain but it ins't serious enough to phone the police........

    grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr I'm still really wound up by the phone callimage

  • BookyBooky ✭✭✭
    I
    Bouncing Barlist wrote (see)
    I had some junk mail from O2 on Saturday, it contained (wait for it)

    A bar of Green and Blacks milk chocolate image
    Ooh, now that's the sort of junk mail I wouldn't mind receiving... image
  • Before I joined the TPS I used to say "That's very interesting... can you just wait a minute?", then I'd put the phone down on the stairs and go and watch telly.

    DtS - love your approach. I'm using that one next time.

  • WilkieWilkie ✭✭✭

    Seren - there's some sort of regulatory body, or ombudsman or something, that companies like this have to answer to.

    Not sure how to find out who it is, though.  I'll have a google!

  • I had a quick look but couldn't find anything Wilkie...............My googling skills aren't greatimage
  • Johnny Blaze wrote (see)

    try cancelling your sky subscription - you get 20 minutes of them trying to sell you:

    1. do you like movies - A more expensive sky subscription 
    2. do you like footie - ditto
    3. what channels do the kids watch (guilt trip one that)
    4. how much do you pay for broadband; how much do you download a month
    5. what about a combined package telly/phone/internet
    See if you can stay calmimage


    Cancelling our BT broadband subscription when we switched to Sky was as bad.

    It took BT 6 weeks to send through the code we needed to pass to Sky for them to go ahead with the switch. When we passed it over it didn't have enough time before it expired for them to switch over.

    When I rang BT to try and get a new code they said it would take a week to get the code out, when I asked to be put through to the complaints department they told me they couldn't do it as the complaints department didn't have a customer facing phone number. Somewhere on the BT website I'd seen a number for the complaints department. Having calmly discussed the matter with the person on the other end of the line I got a bit narked and asked them if BT deliberately gave out misleading information and were blocking us from swapping. Phone instantly went dead.

    Got the problem sorted though when I wrote a letter of complaint to them and sent a copy to the chairman of BT at their head office. Got a phone call from his secretary the same day the letter arrived who gave us the code over the phone and then followed it up with an email.

  • Sheri12 wrote (see)

    I've had a few annoying ones recently purporting to be from companies who I do have an account with.

     Them: Hello, I'm calling from Company X regarding your account.

    Me: Hello.

    Them: Before I continue I need to confirm some security details. Could you give me your date of birth, please.

    Me: Ummm... you called me? Why do I need to give you my date of birth?

    Them: For security.

    Me: But I don't know who you are. I didn't phone you, you phoned me. How do I know you're really from Company X?

    Them: We need it for security.

    Me: Well, from the point of view of my security, I don't want to give it to you.

    Them: (baffled silence)

    I mean, they probably were genuinely from the company. But how am I supposed to know that when someone phones out of the blue asking for my personal data?


    Had the same thing with them asking me to tell them my details so I refused and told them that as they had rung me then they could tell me the details and I'd confirm whether they were right.

    When they wouldn't I told them I wasn't going to give them details over the phone as I hadn't phoned them. Poor guy was at a loss for what to do at that point. Guess the script didn't cater for the situation.

  • WilkieWilkie ✭✭✭

    As far as I can tell, it's the TPS, but I can't see where the rules actually can be found.

    However, if you are registered with TPS, and get a call from someone you don't want to get calls from tell the caller not to call again. 

    If they do call again, they are breaking some rule or other and you can complain to TPS.

  • problem is though Wilks is that many of these cold calls are routed from outside the UK so technically fall outside the TPS - you'll usually find they withhold their number so can't be traced
  • Hi wilkie I'm registered with the TPS and thats why don't get many......

    I found the information comisiioners will take the complaints in writing but I'm not sure they can do much apart from making statistics...

    I told the guy that we had opted out and therefore didn't want to recieve any more and he just insisted that he had our details and would keep on phoning back...........

    the only information was our name out of the phone book as he didn't know who was the subscriber or anything about our warranty.

    unfortunately the information commisioner said that there is nothing they can do if he keeps on phoning us back however many times or is abusive and neither can any of the other similar organisations.........they can just process the complaint forms................so not much good there.......

  • Rebuild africa charity call for my boyfriend daily- off work on monday and had 6calls from them!! In the end i replied if you stopped calling here you might just rebuild africa quicker- funnily enough they've not called since!
  • I usually just say goodbyeand hang up. If they call back, I  lay the receiver down and go off somewhere else.

  • Re people calling and asking for details - I have to say HSBC, my bank, are usually good - they will identify themselves, give the first half of the detail and ask you to confirm the rest (e.g. postcode) rather than just asking you to give personal details in full without any sort of security check.
  • WilkieWilkie ✭✭✭

    Hmmm - in that case, Seren, I'd follow the lying the received down and going off for a bath route.

    The more time he wastes with you, the less time he has to spend on potential leads, so he probably won't bother.

    If that doesn't work, try the whistle down the receiver?  Or an air-horn?

    Can you establish who he actually works for, and complain to them?

  • TPS works only when the call originates from within the UK. I am getting increasingly irritated by calls from the far East (usually India) where TPS has no jurisdiction.

    What winds me up even more is that so many call centres are based abroad these days I GENUINELY cannot understand a word that's being said to me, even when I've called THEM for help!

    I had connection problems with my mobile phone whilst in Dublin recently for the marathon. I had called five days earlier to have the international bar lifted. The woman on the phone said she's done it and hadn't. image When I got to Ireland I had no phone connection and Shades and I spent ages in the 3 shop on the bloody phone to India and the guy spoke with an accent SO THICK I could've signed my own death warrant and not known about it. And I had no choice but to give my details over the phone "for security" or I would've been without a phone for all that time!

  • I had another annoying one today (it's been a bad day for phone calls).

    Caller: Can I speak to Mr K please?

    Me: I'm sorry, he's not in at the moment.

    Caller: Oh, OK, I'll call back later.

    Me: Can I give him a message?

    Caller: Oh, it's so-and-so motor insurance company about an incident he was involved in last year. But I need to speak to him personally. Don't panic! Nothing to worry about! 

    Me: No, that was me. The insurance policy is in my name, it was me that was involved in the incident. But it's all been resolved long ago.

    Caller: No, it is Mr K I need to speak to, the policy is in his name. I'm not allowed to discuss it with anyone else.

    Me: But it isn't, it is in my name. My husband doesn't have a policy with you at all. If you check your records  you'll see the policy is in my name and I was the person involved in the incident.

    Caller: I can't discuss it with you. I need to speak to Mr K as the policy is in his name.

    Me: But it isn't.....

    Caller: When will Mr K be available, please?

    I'm ashamed to say that at this point I hung up in frustration. 

  • Sheri12 - I think you did well to keep going that long!
  • The nuclear option if you can manage it:

    1. Find the home address of the Managing Director/Chairman
    2. Hand write a letter of complaint
    3. Address it to him, or better still, his wife...
    4. Wait for the rolls royce treatement to arrive
  • I used to get phone calls from a loan company while Mr K was in the Navy. We were behind in paying, and they kept writing to us about it (fair enough!)

    They started insisting it was a joint loan, but refused to put my name on the paperwork or speak to me about the repayments. One persistant chap got the wrong side of me and he asked to speak to Mr K the minute he got back from work. Fair enough, it was March, he was due home in...July image

    Next week I got letters with my name on them as well.

  • Dear all those who have commented on the nature of charity cold calls and advised how to deal with them.

    Have you ever considered the people who are making these calls? yes they are people. people like you who work hard. people unlike you who work hard for little pay to try and cause a little bit of good in this world. Perhaps next time you recieve a charity cold call you might show a little respect to the person on the other end of the line. Do not toy with them, do not leave them for hours, its simply rude. Most of these people truly believe in the charities for which they are trying to raise money. The reason they ask for direct debit regular payments (even something as small as 18p a day) is so that when an earthquake strikes unexpectadly in a place like haiti, stores are already in place to provide these people with food and water. if there were'nt any stores, these people would die, these children would die of thirst or starve or die of a terrible disease. The you have advised that we treat these people shouldn't be put upon anyone. The money that is donated from the people that really care goes straight to the charity. the charities simply emply these agencies so that they do not have to spend tons of money buying telephone equipment when they could be spending that money on those who need it. truly charitble people would recognise this and recognise that these people are not evil or even rude. They have feelings and more importantly they care. if it wasn't for these people the charities would have half the amount of support. if it wasn't for these people, many more would die. you are lucky enough to have been born into wealthy countries. I can assume this because you are all sitting at your computers moaning about people who called you on your telephones whilst you were sitting in your nice house with a roof over your head and i'm pretty sure, a tap in your kitchen. think about what you have. Think about how lucky you are. Think about what a difference you could make for those who are not as lucky as yourselves. not anywhere near as lucky. not even lucky. why were they born into poverty and not us? I don't know but i certainly do know that every one of you is capable of donating to people who have nothing. 1 pound from your hard earned salary per week. not even 15 minutes work.

     

     

    count to 4...

     

    A child dies...

     

    count to 4 ....

    A child dies.

     

     

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