How to STOP Telemarketers from Calling

Posted by Tollfreenumber.ORG  at June 7th, 2013

Getting a call during dinner from an unwelcomed telemarketer has become an unfortunate likelihood in many American homes. The calls seem to never cease and come at the most annoying times and often from companies that you have never giving your information to.

Unfortunately, ignoring these calls won’t stop the persistent sales teams from trying to reach you each and every day.

Solicitors include small companies trying to sell you a local service, to large national chains that try to sell you insurance, additions for your home, solar installations, upgrades to your cable and phone service and the list goes on…

Tollfreenumber.ORG reveals how to really stop telemarketers from calling

In light of consumer complaints about harassment, the government has instituted ways that we can stop telemarketing companies from being legally allowed to contact us. In addition, you may alter your phone number in a way that makes it impossible for telemarketers to reach you. Here are the top tips for keeping telemarketers at bay.

Block Unidentified Numbers

If you just block unidentified numbers you may be able to keep away some telemarketers. Because these callers are used to being screened, they will often set up their outgoing calls so that the recipient can’t see who they are. Depending on your cell phone capabilities or landline provider, you may be able to force callers who have a blocked number to manually enter their number before the call goes through. Since a telemarketer doesn’t want to do this, he will usually just hang up instead and you won’t receive the call.

It worth noting that some telemarketing companies are willing to reveal their number just to have their call completed to your home. While you won’t be able to see the name of the company itself, if a number pops up on your caller ID then blocking unidentified numbers won’t be enough to completely keep away sales calls.

1-800 Number

Getting a 1-800 number to use as your point of contact is another way to stop getting telemarketing calls. Since it is against the law for telemarketers to call these numbers to solicit business, you are ensured to stop all telemarketing calls at any time of day. You may often transfer your current phone number to a toll free number with services like tollfreenumber.org, and the number may be called from within any of the 50 states. Since the service is provided by a private company, it requires a monthly fee, but you won’t likely have a long term contract commitment.

A toll free number also allows you to unlock the blocked caller ID from anyone. While some calls often come up as private or blocked on a caller ID screen, you will be able to see the full number of the person who is dialing you. This allows for even better screening of your calls, whether from an organization or just someone you don’t really want to speak to. Toll free 1-800 numbers also offer special features like call music and can be added to a cell phone plan as well as a landline. You will own your number so it can’t be resold to anyone else while you are using it.

No Call List

The National Do Not Call Registry is free to sign up for, and while doesn’t promise to eliminate 100% of telemarketing calls, it will get rid of most unwanted calls. You can sign up at donotcall.gov, and within 31 days of your registration most telemarketing companies are required to stop calling your phone number. You can only register up to three numbers at one time, but if you have a lot of numbers to register you are allowed to repeat the process until all of your phone numbers have been registered with the service.

You can register both landlines and cell phone numbers with this service. However, since certain organizations like non-profit charities or political campaigns are exempt from the no call list, you will probably still get some unwelcomed phone calls even after signing up – especially during election season. The good news, however, is that you can file a complaint against a company that is supposed to stop calling but does not, so there is some recourse to really make the calls cease. The do not call list is overseen by the Federal Trade Commission, or FTC.

Avoid Giving Real Personal Information

Sometimes a telemarketer can get your information from an Internet form that you forgot you filled out, so be wary of giving an accurate phone number unless you absolutely need to. If you are just signing up for a free magazine trial, for instance, don’t give your real phone number or you may be setting yourself up to receive relentless calls to sign up later. In some cases, a company to whom you provide your number may also sell your information or provide it to another brand owned by the same company.

Whenever possible, enter a fake number with a “555” as your phone number when you are not dealing with a vendor who you plan to have an ongoing mutual relationship with. Companies like a credit card corporation may very well need to contact you if you are opening an account, so don’t provide fake information to someone who will need to manage an actual account.

Ask to Be Removed

It sounds too good to be true – and sometimes it is – but some telemarketers will remove you from their call list if you simply ask them to remove your contact information from their databases. You may need to be assertive, or ask to speak to a supervisor, but you can sometimes stop the calls by frankly letting the caller know you will never use their service or product. If you bluntly make it clear they are wasting their own time and energy, they may be persuaded to remove your phone number from their database and stop the calls.

You can also fib and say that the person whom they are trying to reach no longer lives at that address, which may result in telemarketers deleting your entry from their list. If you ask to be removed, however, be prepared to take additional measures before you actually succeed in stopping the calls.

Telemarketers are annoying to say the least, but if you institute one of these tips in your home you should be able to avoid them for the most part. You can also consider just switching your landline number to a cell phone, which will be unlisted and not nearly as likely to get calls from solicitors. However, the only sure ways to get rid of a bad case of telemarketing calls is to register for the no call list and transfer your service to a 1-800 number which is considered off limits for solicitors.

Important Links:

Get a 1-800 Number from TollfreeNumber.ORG and Stop telemarketers in their tracks

Contact the Federal Trade Commission about Telemarketers

US Department of Justice Telemarketer Website

The National Do Not Call Registry