I had an exciting call yesterday from a telemarketer (from a local Ottawa number) asking if I could donate $100 to the “Federal Government.”. I politely said no (I suggested asking for the money two weeks after Christmas might not be an optimal strategy). The interesting part was the young man who spoke to me had an accent that suggested he was from Newfoundland. I almost commented, “Well done, my son! I know you didn’t vote for the Tories, and none of your family did, but if you can make money off them harassing me, good on ya!” but I decided I better not.
The interesting observation for me was that telemarketers, in general, didn’t call much between Christmas and New Year. However, since January 3rd, my house has been under full-court press regarding telemarketers calling all day long. Before someone remarks on getting on the alleged No Call list, save it for the Church, because I have told every one of these folks, “Don’t call me,” “Stop calling me!“, and finally, “This is bordering on harassment,” yet they do not go away. I checked my phone number with the Do Not Call list, and my number is registered, and it now expires from the list on 11-Jan-2017, but my guess is this is not going to do much good.
I get calls from Bell, Rogers, and the NAC more often than I get calls from my kids who are off at school. To file a complaint about the telemarketers, this is the complaint site link to click on how to do this, but if you have also ticked on a box saying to a supplier (like Bell or Rogers), “It is OK to call me about new deals“, I think you are out of luck in terms of complaining about their barrage of calls.
Before anyone says, “Why not call and complain about the Tories calling you?” read the following from the list of folks who are exempt from these rules:
The exemptions include telemarketing calls made by, or on behalf of:
- Canadian registered charities;
- Political parties, riding associations and candidates; and
- Newspapers of general circulation for the purpose of soliciting subscriptions.
Telemarketing calls from organizations with whom you have an existing business relationship are also exempt. You are considered to have an existing business relationship with a telemarketer if you:
- Purchased, leased, or rented a product or service in the last eighteen (18) months from the telemarketer;
- Have a written contract with the telemarketer for a service that is still in effect or expired within the last eighteen (18) months; and/or
- Asked a telemarketer about a product or service within the last six (6) months.
Telemarketers may also call you if you have provided express consent to be called. Express consent includes:
- Your permission on a written form, electronic form, or an online form; or
- Your verbal permission.
My phone is not my own, and neither is yours. Tonight I got home and had three more calls (two from folks asking if I had old clothing to donate). How nice.
I never realized there were so many exemptions to blocking calls from these pests…why even bother with a “do not call” list? One thing I realized when I got my last 2 phone numbers that were required with moves, I remembered why I loved my unlisted number before…I never realized how many fewer times my phone rang with the unlisted number. It may just be a loved expense to counteract the aggravation from the calls…:-)
Keep the old Seinfeld script beside the phone where he asks the person for their home number and you will call them back later. They say they don’t take calls from clients @ home, Jerry responds neither does he – hangs up. Or something like that.