It has been reported that more than 175,000 people complained about cold calling last year.
Tough new rules brought in by the Government earlier this year means that companies who target Consumers with cold calls and nuisance texts could face fines of up to £500,000.
You would think that the threat of such a large fine would stop these companies but it hasn’t.
The TCA receives at least 1 call a day from a victim of cold calling. This needs to stop, Consumers need to remember that they are trained to back you into a corner, bully you and pull on your heart strings. Anything that gets you to sign up to their service is a win for them.
Next time you pick up the phone, before you hang up and before they get a word in, repeat these words;
“Under the data protection act I request that you remove me from your list and do not call me again”.
This should work. Mentioning the data protection act and advising them to remove you from the list are requests which all cold calling companies have to honor. This should work but if it doesn’t, below are some useful tips on how to stop them for good;
- Register with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) – a free service which prevents UK-based companies from making unsolicited calls to TPS-registered phone numbers.
- Always ask companies you register for services with not to call you for marketing purposes and not to pass your number on to third parties – this may be a case of ticking an opt in/out box or may involve making a specific request in writing
- Go ex-directory to avoid callers finding your number in a phonebook
- Screen calls – genuine callers are likely to leave a message
- Block calls from withheld numbers, although this may block some calls you wanted to receive as well
- Be calm and firm with cold callers and ask them to take you off their lists – never reveal your name, address or financial details on the phone to unsolicited callers
- Use call blocking services such as CPR Call Blocker and TrueCall Call Blocker which plug into your home phone and allow you to screen the calls you receive
If all the above recommendations fail to stop the cold callers then the best thing to do is report the calls to the appropriate organisations as outlined below:
- Report cold callers – if you are registered with the TPS and still receive calls report the issue to them and they will log the complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office
- Report suspected scams to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040
- Report problem/ nuisance calls to your phone provider or Ofcom on 0300 123 3000
You do not have to put up with it! Take the appropriate steps now to ensure your enjoyment and peace of life.
The Time Timeshare Consumer Association is a not for profit organisation. It has extensive costs in supporting timeshare Consumers and as such, we rely upon the generosity of individuals, communities and businesses so as to provide a continuation of the free services that we offer.
For more information regarding this article or assistance in any other timeshare related issues please contact the TCA on 01908 881058 or email: info@TimeshareConsumerAssociation.org.uk