National "Do Not Call" List

[Scream]

This is something that's in the works here in Canada, hopefully to be introduced sometime soon. I was just wondering if any of the Americans here who have chosen to be listed to avoid receiving unsolicited calls from telemarketers could comment on how well this is working in the US.

I get 3 or 4 calls a day for various things, and would be really happy to make them all go away.

[Steve]

I think we have something like that implemented here.

[Yatta]

I live in the USA, I signed up on the Do Not Call list a year years ago. I don't get that much telemarketing actually, but I don't know if it's because I signed up there.

[Scotty]

I still get a few calls a week from a-holes that won't leave a message on the answering machine.

Before the DNC list, I used to get 5+ a day. :mad:

Something that helped before the DNC law got passed was to use "Call Intercept", which cost $5 a month, and put anonymous calls through a voicemail system.

[Marty]

its becomming more popular here now in Australia. however, like it or not it doesnt completely apply with market research.

[KaiserSoze]

I'm on the "do not call list" and it's excellent. Pretty much went from 3-5 calls a day down to nothing.

[Dave-ros]

Ugh yes, I remember being cold-called by credit card telemarketers when I was an exchange student in Michigan -- apparently they just had to call me about their remarkable offer, and they even knew me by name, despite my not being an American citizen and hence the fact that I'd be automatically turned down if I applied for an American credit card! (The university in question probably sold our details to them wholesale :mad:)

[Phait]

Next time they call just turn the tables and start off with "how can I help you today?" :D

[Dave-ros]

At least your cold-calling telemarketers are (presumably) domestic and can be understood. We in Britain frequently get cold-called by people in India or other foreign countries who in many cases seem to have been given a couple of (bad) English lessons; coupled with the line running halfway across the planet, they can often barely be understood at all.

Apparently there aren't enough people in this country willing to be paid 0.00000001p per lifetime for the pleasure of interrupting people's dinner/TV watching, so the telemarketers have to set up their sweatshops abroad :mad:

Mind you, one time I was the only person in the house (back in about 2002) and got cold-called by some very forceful guys telling me I'd won a cruise in the Caribbean -- I just had to give them my credit card number... and funnily enough, they were Americans :tinyted:

[Scream]

At least your cold-calling telemarketers are (presumably) domestic and can be understood.

Ha! I wish. Many of ours are out of Toronto, which is a huge multicultural centre. Who is desperate enough for money that they'll take a job calling and bugging the shit out of people, and will endure repeatedly being yelled at, told "NO!", and being hung up on? Immigrants who just arrived in the country, many of whom speak very poor English.

Once this comes out here I'll be signing up immediately, and any calls I get from there on in, I'll either be reporting (if they aren't on the exception list) or asking the person on the other end to remove me from their calling list. Annoyingly, local newspapers are going to be on the exception list. I get calls from those people weekly.

[Mudsling3]

I am sick of these Mofo playing just voice recordings. Just google and there are hundreds of these sites...which one is legit here in the States?

[peoplessi]

Hah, we do have that in Finland. If you are on one of those lists, there is no telephone marketing directed to you.

[crunchy superman]

The list here in the States helps, but it's far from absolute. Charities, political organizations, phone surveys & companies you've done business with before are all exempt from the list.

[Nessus]

I'm on the "do not call list" and it's excellent. Pretty much went from 3-5 calls a day down to nothing.

That was my experience, I was getting hassled terribly up to like 9 or 10 at night and then when I signed up, nothing.

[Dave-ros]

British equivalent also works -- we got our phone line attached (this is a rental flat) in November, and I specified that we wanted to be on the "do not call" list, but BT said it would take a couple of weeks to implement, for no apparent reason, so naturally we got some calls until it went through. For example: that exact night, I got cold-called by a certain telecoms company wanting me to switch allegiance (and who then lied that they only wanted my bank details to put on a Direct Debit form that I could sign if I wanted to join :doh:). However, absolutely no unsolicited calls since the two-week mark!

Is there a mail equivalent in America? Over here, a postman got fired for telling residents in his area how to opt out of junk mail, because apparently the Royal Mail is paid for by these companies :mad:

[Scream]

Is there a mail equivalent in America? Over here, a postman got fired for telling residents in his area how to opt out of junk mail, because apparently the Royal Mail is paid for by these companies :mad:

God I wish we had something to stop junk mail. They must kill a billion trees a day to keep all that shit coming.

[Steve]

God I wish we had something to stop junk mail. They must kill a billion trees a day to keep all that shit coming.

We slap "No Junk Mail" stickers on our letter boxes here to stop that. Can you guys not do that where you live?

[Scream]

Nope, we have no system to stop the flow of that crap. It's all recyclable, but I suspect it still creates a ton of waste. I hate it. It should be banned outright IMO.

Edit: Well, you learn something new everyday. Went to Canada Post's website and they claim that if you put on a note on your mailbox saying you don't want that crap, they'll stop delivering it to you. Thanks!

/rushes to write up note...

[Dave-ros]

Well, you know what they'll say -- "sorry, but if we can't send junk mail, then we can't afford to provide the service at all!" Just like websites with annoying adverts and popups...

I'm with Bill Hicks: advertisers should do the decent thing and kill themselves :p

[Nessus]

God I wish we had something to stop junk mail. They must kill a billion trees a day to keep all that shit coming.

You'd think with the whole green craze these days someone could get that in check, the amount of waste is incredible.

[Vivi]

I'm on the "do not call list" and it's excellent. Pretty much went from 3-5 calls a day down to nothing.

Same here. Registered 4 of my phone numbers and more recently my cell phone.

[Sang]

Sometimes I get marketing calls (not very often).. and when I pick up the phone they're already starting their entire explanation. And after the entire jazz I just say "yeah.. uh, my dad's not here right now" ;)

[Dave-ros]

That's weird -- normally you have to wait on hold while they get around to talking to you! Which over here means a long, empty pause, but in the USA, as I remember, involves an annoying recorded woman saying "Please hold on... Please hold on..." :mad:

[Sang]

Then why not hang up because you don't even want to talk to them? :o

[Dave-ros]

Because it might be a proper person who I actually want to speak to, who's having trouble getting connected :o

TBH I don't have this problem (thanks to the opt-out list), but I think my folks still do -- so, they assume that any phone call that starts with an international phone line-style hissing is "India Calling" and hang up ;)

[Scream]

The best we have here at the moment is call display so that you can tell if it's a number you know or not, but it pisses me off to even have to hear the phone ring and get up and look if the phone's not nearby. It's goddam rude. I feel the same about door to door people as well, although at least they're putting a little effort into flogging their wares.

[Destroyer]

I live in the USA, I signed up on the Do Not Call list a year years ago. I don't get that much telemarketing actually, but I don't know if it's because I signed up there.
oh man i sooo needa do this.

[TerminX]

I signed up for this when it first became available and it helped quite a bit. I was getting a lot of phone spam before but it all pretty much stopped once I added my numbers to the list. Just about the only thing I get now are solicitations for police donations. Don't forget to renew your entry in the list after a few years. ;)

[twelvepaws]

I failed to renew my listing on the "Do Not Call" list, but caller ID appears on the phone, the PC screen and on the TV scrren, because we have total service with a satellite dish company. If I don't recognize the #, or if it says simply "Out of Area", I don't answer. Although occasionally I let the 4- year-old granddaughter answer......and they never bother us again! :D

[Joe Siegler]

This is something that's in the works here in Canada, hopefully to be introduced sometime soon. I was just wondering if any of the Americans here who have chosen to be listed to avoid receiving unsolicited calls from telemarketers could comment on how well this is working in the US.

I get 3 or 4 calls a day for various things, and would be really happy to make them all go away.

The state of Texas did that about a year or two before the national one. I'm on both for my home line and my cell phone. It's worked well, we get almost none.

Course I have Caller ID, and if I don't recognize the number, I don't pick up anyway, but it's nice not to get the calls in the first place. Every once in awhile we get a random one, but that's not a big deal.

[Dave-ros]

Although occasionally I let the 4- year-old granddaughter answer......and they never bother us again!
Funny you should say that: the humorous science magazine AIR (Annals of Improbable Research) has suggested an experiment, where you respond to telemarketers by simply saying "Hello" in a childlike voice (and nothing else), and see how many times you can say it before they give up and ring off! :p

[Nacho]

At least your cold-calling telemarketers are (presumably) domestic and can be understood. We in Britain frequently get cold-called by people in India or other foreign countries who in many cases seem to have been given a couple of (bad) English lessons; coupled with the line running halfway across the planet, they can often barely be understood at all.

Like that in Canada to.

I have a funny story about this actually...Sit children, listen.

Once upon a time I got a phone call from one of those free credit card companies and I couldn't understand a word she was saying. She just kept talking and talking and didn't even ask if I was interested in anything. Out of massive confusion trying to comprehend what she was saying I stayed on for five minutes before she said, "Thank you have a good day Mr. Lewis.".

A week later I get a call from the same company from a person IN Canada who can speak english say that they're happy I chose them for a credit card and they wanted to ask a few questions. This is when I asked why someone who I could understand didn't talk to me in the first place and hung up.

The end.

[Sharpie]

its funny because here in Australia the server where you had to go online and give your details crashed because of so many people on the server lol
It stops a great deal of calls excluding one or two surveys and government calls which are excluded from the register but it is definitely worth it

[Daedolon]

I wish there was something like this for emails.

[Dave-ros]

Fat chance -- there's too many potential e-mail addresses in the world, especially compared to the number of phone numbers in each area code :p

[The Red Slaughter]

I'm going to search for something like this just as soon as I get my own home! And then I will get one of those "Do Not Call" thingies. Possibly put something to warn about Junk Mail in my mailbox too, and maybe something to keep vendors away.

[IHerman]

Didn't know it's that much of a problem. I never get called here in Holland, but I'd put my number in the list asap if I got more than 1 phonecall a month. Actually I'd put my number on the list after the first call.

We do have teams walking in the street trying to sell you crap, it's so freaking annoying.

[Geir]

Wow... I get several phone calls a day from just a few companies. You don't get an answering machine message (Or you get the annoying tone for the whole 45 seconds) and sometimes you don't even get a person answering AT ALL... What odd asses Bell is...

[Dave-ros]

If it's only a few companies, that's less trouble to call them all up and complain :p

No, seriously, do it -- you shouldn't have to put up with unsolicited calls every day from the same companies. Tell them you'll sue them for harassment or something... they must have gotten the message by now that you don't want their stupid products?!

[bobthefish]

when telemarketers call, i like to screw with em with a soundboard or just plain yell into the phone "stfu dont call again!"

[Little Conqueror]

"Hello?"
"Hi, I'm _________ calling on behalf of ________. May I speak to Mr. _________?"
"No, I'm sorry. He works for a living."

[Scream]

This finally went into effect here today in Canada. The government website to sign up was so busy that it crashed and has been down for the whole day. Guess I'm not the only one who was looking forward to it.

[shiranui]

I don't get why people feel compelled to talk to strangers on the phone. I just hang up the instant I've figured out it's someone trying to sell something.

[Ironside]

I turned on a new line and without even giving my new number to anyone I received a telemarketing call and they knew my name. I think the telephone company itself sells names and numbers.:(

[Scream]

I don't get why people feel compelled to talk to strangers on the phone. I just hang up the instant I've figured out it's someone trying to sell something.

I don't feel compelled to talk to them at all. That doesn't change the fact that if I don't want to miss legit calls I still have to listen to the phone ring, get up to look at who is calling on the call display, and then ignore it. It's annoying. Lately what I do when I see a number from what's obviously a telemarketer is answer it and hang up right away. I hate listening to that damn ring.

edit: Just managed to register. 30 days and much of the bullshit calls go away. Me so happy. :)

[Yenji]

I registered my home phone yesterday with no troubles. I don't get teletemarketer calls on my cell phone and I won't register that one unless I do. Maybe I'm just paranoid but since charities and what not are exempt I could see them using this list as a reference to call people :p

[Scream]

Ha! You never know. I also registered here (http://www.ioptout.ca/), which is a service that will email ALL the exempted telemarketers asking them to remove you from their calling lists. They are obliged by law to comply. Between the two, I should pretty much stop getting all unsolicited calls. That would be great...