The wrinkle is, this is a company I have a relationship with, specifically my mortgage company.
They called a month or so ago, from a call center (I could hear all sorts of background noise) trying to get me to do a cash-out re-fi, something I am not interested in doing. I told them not to call me unless I was late on my mortgage payment.
They called again yesterday from the same noisy call center, again pushing hard to get me with a Qualified Loan Officer to process my cash-out refi. I waited until she took a breath and asked to speak with a supervisor.
Miss Amy got on, all chirpy, and I explained that I had already told them last month not to call me unless I was late on my mortgage and that if they called again I would be in contact with my state attorney general (no idea if I have a leg to stand on there, but figured it wouldn’t hurt). Miss Amy said she understood, I hung up.
So, if they call a third time, can I sue them for big bucks or am I on the hook until we pay off the mortgage?
If you are on the Do Not Call registry, then you report them to the FTC.
I am not aware of any private right of action you might have. Not sure if any states have analogous statutes to the Do Not Call registry (but I would be a little surprised if they did, for federalism reasons).
I thought there was a loophole if you had a relationship with them. Does them violating my request not to call have any consequences?
You should be able to opt out of sales and marketing calls. Log into your account (if you’ve set up your account online) and fiddle around through your profile or settings. You should find something about contact preferences or messages and be able to indicate that you do not want sales or marketing contact.
If you aren’t set up online, you can try looking for a customer service phone number and calling them and asking to opt out of sales and marketing contacts (no calls, no emails, no texts).
Third option, block that call center. It won’t be the same one used if there’s a problem with your payment. It’s a sales call center. Payments are handled elsewhere.
The DNC (and I assume your AG) isn’t going to do anything since, as you said, you have a prior relationship with them.
I agree with the others that you need to figure out their privacy/opt out options and go from there. Every time I refi I do that right away. One of the papers you get usually explains how to do it. I log on and/or call and opt out of everything I can.
Another option is to pretend they have the wrong number. They’ll call, start in on their spiel and at some point say something like “I’m sorry, I think you have the wrong number, I rent my business, I don’t have a mortgage with you”. They’ll ask if your name is ivylass, say no. They’ll ask if your phone number is [whatever your number is], say yes. In most cases that’s enough to convince them to take your number out and they should stop autodialing you.
With that trick, I usually get better results when I swap business and home. If you say something about your business, they likely won’t launch into trying to refi your home even if they think they have the wrong number.
The nuclear option would be to change the number the bank has on file with you. Actual communication might be harder, but at least they won’t be selling your number all over town.
A fourth option:
Re-finance your mortgage – but with a different company. Use the money from them to pay off this company, and say good riddance to them. (Be sure to make it clear to them why you’re leaving.) Given the current market, and the fact that you’ve been paying for a while, you can probably get a good deal on a re-finance. (Some loan officers enjoy ‘sticking it’ to the competition, and might give you a better deal when they hear your story.)