Those annoying phone calls one gets in the evening from call centres?

Question

How do you handle them, put the phone down, swear, or like me do you use whit to humour them? My fave is when Window comps phone I say I don't have windows as I live in a cellar and is not the response they're after and they can't come back on that!LOL

Answer 1

I will have to remember that one! But if you live in the UK you can actually register with the Telephone Preference Service and it stops all the unsolicited calls. So now when I get any I just say, I am TPS registered and they apologise and put the phone down!

Answer 2

Well I have found the best answer to be let them jabber at first to confirm it is a call centre or sales line then very seriously ask them how they obtained the number as they have come through to the ( your local ) ie Clacton CID and that any further attempts on this number will lead to a prosecution for wasting Police time

There is the other method but that costs and that is to get BT to block all withheld number calls as call centres and sales lines never give their recall number ( try dialling 1471 ) after your next time waster

Good Luck Roger

Answer 3

You can get TPS exclusion which prevents call centres from hassling you.

It takes 28 days to get fully implemented but I can't recommend it enough. Every now and then I get marketing calls and tell them I have TPS exclusion and they always seem more than curtious and no more hassle.

Other than that I used to just hang up I really couldn't be bothered with it all the time. Occassionally I would wind them up for fun but I often found reps to be very rude so hanging up seemed the best option

Answer 4

It can be quite entertaining striking up a chatty friendship with one of these people, especially the ones from abroad. Callers often respond to friendly banter and will do almost anything to prevent you hanging up. Last week I spent a full twenty minutes with one of these guys, calling from Dublin, until the penny dropped for him. Another time recently I kept trying to get the required person (me) to the phone, that took a good half-hour before he got fed up. One chap gave me a recipe for chappatis, that took about twenty minutes. A friend of mine blows into a loud piercing whistle at the phone mouthpiece then says "What was that?" Great fun!

Answer 5

I ask them to give me a number to call back as im really interested in their product. Then phone them back (thats when you get the english people) and tell them politely that they have broken the law by phoning you as you have TPS. Get them to send out a letter stating that they will never contact you again without your permission. I did that about a month ago for a few companies and the phone calls have stopped.

Answer 6

I tell them I'm 95 years old and living on a basic pension - they immediately lose interest - the trouble is they often phone just when we're in the middle of a meal - I know they have a job to do, but it's very annoying.

Answer 7

always a great answer for windows is.... "i would absolutely love them, just ask the council if they will pay for them, then you can install them when you like".

also, ask where they got your details, then tell them you want your name and details removed from there database, by law they have to remove it.

If you have to wait a few moments for someone to answer, its because an auto dialler has called and is waiting for a operator to become free.

I really hate the Indian call centres that try and pretend they're English....... Hello im Ronald (with the thickest accent), be honest and tell me your name..... grrrr. lol

great question too.

Answer 8

Yeah, I get recorded messages saying ive won the swedish lottery or something. This happens about 6 times a day. Phone company wont do anything about it. Doh!.

Answer 9

If it is a recording, as too many are these days, just hang up. If it is an actual person trying to earn a living, politely tell them you aren't interested, then hang up.

Answer 10

I had one from an Indian saying I had won a holiday. Before he could say any more I asked him if he had a family. When he said yes I told him, you take the holiday and send me a postcard when you get there. He was speechless.