You know, having been a collections agent in the past, I feel somehow compelled to point out that there is the infrequent person who collects money for a living who isn’t a scumbag. There are those of us who follow the letter of the law in seeking to collect money that is rightfully owed.
Wry, Get the ZAPPER…20 bucks, You’ll never be bothered by this Telemarketer again. You can buy it at Home Depot or just about anyplace now.
Did I mention that the WryGuy is in finance? And that he is the guy who sets policy and supervises the collection agents in his company? And… I used to do telephone market research. So I’m with you 100% Otto. If I had any legitimate debt I had neglected to pay, I would NOT blame the company trying to collect the money it was owed. I was just baffled by this type of phone call, and thought it might be a new way of skirting the do-not-call list. Telemarketers have to eat, too, but that doesn’t mean I have to feed 'em.
Wry, you are right, it is a way or skirting the “Do Not Call List” The ZAPPER has two settings. each setting is designed to send out disconnect signals to the auto-dialers that contain your telephone number. The 2nd generation Zapper may have more settings. Bottom line, I went from 4-8 unwanted calls a week to Zippo, immediately after installing the ZAPPER!
Or set your phone service so that calls from blocked numbers get a system message that tells them you don’t accept blocked calls. Since the message includes instructions on how to unblock one’s numner, your real human callers can do so, and your automatic non-human dialers won’t be leaving you a message.
I do want to say that I’ve been receiving very annoying messages from Comcast (a regional cable company). You pick up the phone and get a recorded message that says something like “We’re sorry we missed your call, please call us back at this number.” We got this call for 10 days straight and had a hard time interesting the operators at the number in (a) apologizing, or (b) doing anything about it. They wanted my social security number, which I wouldn’t give them. They said they needed it to verify my account. I pointed out that they obviously could confirm my phone number sibce they kept dialing it. Only when I mentioned the no-call list and suggested that the next call would be from my lawyer did anyone agree that they could do something about the calls. Whether this was a marketing technique or a computer error I don’t know. But I did promise them at call #5 that I would talk about this experience with everyone I knew.
Not as bad as this commercial this morning. Woman starts trying to sell something in a seductive voice, man buys it. Happens again. <narrator>You’ve heard about the national do-not-call registry. But you’re missing out on information about great new products! Sign up for the do-call list by calling this number. (number) $3.99 for the first minute and $2.99 for each additional minute.</narrator>
So… I pay to make you guys call me? Huh?
Yes, and I have a dietary suggestion for them.
Um, I think I missed something. 7 digits is local. “1” plus another 10 digits is long distance, but still within the USA. Anything beyond that is international. So it should be easy to figure out if it’s an overseas call. Unless, as I said, I missed something.
You didn’t miss anything. I’m just neurotic about that sort of thing since a friend of mine had her phone line hijacked (no, I have no idea how, just that a ton of overseas calls she didn’t make showed up on her phone bill.)
And incidentally, I have to dial eleven digits to call my next door neighbor (1+ area code + 7-digit number) - I thought that system was nationwide now.
Don’t get too complacent about that particular format. Some places in the Caribbean are reachable with 1+(area code)+(seven digit number), no international dialing code necessary, and they can get pretty pricey.
To toss out another angle on the OP: although you’ve been diligent about payment of obligations, what was the last time you looked at your credit report? Could someone have swipted your identity and has made massive purchases purporting themselves to be you? Hope that’s not it, but I still get calls about some beyotch who has screwed every department store from Tuskeegee to Toronto, and keeps giving them my phone number. :rolleyes:
swipted? WTF?! swiped. Dammit.
We were told maybe three years ago that our area code was getting too big and it would be split into two different area codes. For about a year before the change happened, we had to dial all 11 digits, even for people right next door and in the same area code. They ended up deciding not to split it, so the end result was just a bunch of extra dialing for nothing. But anyway, no, it’s not nationwide.
kaylasdad99, thanks. I didn’t know that. 
This sounds like a phishing expedition more than a marketing goof-up from Comcast. I’ve got Comcast cable, too, and when they call to try to upgrade my service, they’ve never asked for my SSN. You might want to call Comcast to let them know.
Robin
I get about 8 calls a week telling me to call John Somebody at 1-800-whatever. One day, I wrote down that number and I called it. A woman answered the phone with “So and So Financial, can I help you?” and I hung up on her. I deal with those calls on purpose, because people like Tom Mabe make me not want to be on the DNC list. Worthy trade off for some of the fun I have… 
Heh, Tom Mabe is god. 
Cheers,
Vega