How do I stop telemarketers and telephone surveys?

Question

.e.g. those phone calls that noone speaks when you pick up, particularily from long distance sources, telemarketers,

Answer 1

Add your number to the national Do Not Call list. If they call you after that you can sue them and they will be fined.

Answer 2

Telemarketer have to comply to a 'don't call list' if you request one. Your name is on the list for at least six months. Stoping telephone surveys is tricky because they belong to a research company. I'd suggest requesting to have your name removed from the phone book. One of the reasons why you are called by them is because you are a listed number.

Answer 3

get a cellular phone, tell all your family and friends and real business & health contacts your cell phone number. Never give out that number when filling out magazine subscriptions or contest entry forms. Then either unsubscribe your land line phone, OR unplug your land line, and only plug it in when you want to call out or if you arrange for a contact you do know and want to talk with to call you at a certain time. If your known contact calls your cellular phone but wants to talk a long time, just ask for them to call the land line, plug it in for that chat. It got me 100 % total stop on telemarketers and surveys reaching me or interupting me.

Answer 4

It's illegal to call numbers on the national do-not-call list. Simply register your number with them:

https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx

Punishment is a $10,000 fine for each call. They tend not to go after individual indiscretions but boy howdy do they mop up the floor with people who wholesale neglect the law. The result has been dramatically effective. My experience and the experience of everyone I know is that they had problems with tons of annoying telemarketer calls before registering. About a week or two after registering, telemarketing calls dropped to zero and stayed there. I still occassionally get a solicitation for donations from local groups (rare) but these are specifically exempt from the law.

Before people start to think that telemarketers voluntarily stopped behavior, let me tell you what happened when Cingular, my cell phone provider decided it would be a good idea to make their phone number list available to telemarketers. IMMEDIATELY, I started to get one to two telemarketing calls a day (which I had to pay for). The operators were extremely rude. When I would mention to them how inappropriate it was for them to solicit me when I had to pay for the air time, they would cut me off to a recording that basically went blah, blah, blah, sorry you don't like us calling you and making you get charged but tough ****, we are going to do it anyway. Registering my cell number (and everyone else in my family who had the same experience) stopped this behavior cold.

Telemarketers are scum. The way to deal with them is to pressure your congressmen to pass laws that punish them severely. For many years various excuses were given for why this would not work. Lo and behold, it finally became law and it works like a charm. Punishing bad people is very effective in making them behave. Remember that the next time you hear liberal politicians trying to sell you on various reasons why they can't punish bad behavior (crime, illegal immigration, fraud etc.) They are a bunch of freakin scumbag liars. Force them to do what's right and this crap stops.

Answer 5

It takes quite a few months for the "No call record" to strengthen into useful. in case you have been on the record for 6 months or so then start up reporting caller on the "No call record" information superhighway internet site. And the no call record would not hide any organization you have had corporation courting with interior the previous, charities or political marketing campaign merchandising.

Answer 6

Get on the no call list, they will not be allowed to call you or will recieve a fine. Caller ID works well also.

Answer 7

Didn't you put your number on the National Do Not Call Registry?
www.donotcall.gov

Answer 8

the most humorous way is when they call and ask to speak to whom ever, tell them in your saddest voice that the person has just died.....however have all your phone numbers...cells too.. put on the national do not call list....very effective!!!

Answer 9

go to the National Do Not Call Registry website at www.donotcall.gov

Answer 10

call 1800-5-opt-out. It will be a recording. Leave your info and they will take care of it. It's actually a law that they have to remove you from their list.