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City Life

One way to ensure they Do Not Call

By SANDRA THOMPSON
Published September 24, 2005

A few weeks ago, this message, in a deep male voice, was left on my answering machine:

Don't hang up!

This is the Children's Rights Foundation. One of the greatest causes of domestic disputes are money and commonly paying too much for your mortgage. Press 9 now to receive your free mortgage handbook. It will literally save your thousands of dollars.

There was no number to call, but a friend got the same call live and pressed 9 to find out what kind of business was calling her.

They refused to tell her.

They all refuse to tell you. But the Do Not Call folks at the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs require the name and type of company in order to take action.

Last month I reported a call to Do Not Call. In response I received a long letter from a senior consumer complaint analyst who told me my complaint had been closed because I hadn't given them enough information, specifically the "product or services sold."

Okay.

So a week ago after getting the second message saying, Congratulations! I had won a trip to Las Vegas, I called the number left on the machine. The woman who answered said, "Reservations." No clue there. She asked for my confirmation number, which I hadn't written down - figuring it was bogus - and zapped the message. No go. I had to have the number, she said. So much for playing along. I asked for the name of the company, she wouldn't tell me, and when I said I was on the Do Not Call list, she hung up.

It takes some real sleuthing to get this information.

I don't know about you, but I have things to do other than spend my time entrapping fraudulent telemarketers. I'm really glad the cops don't expect us to ID everyone who rips us off before they'll consent to go after them.

I made a second complaint last month; this one apparently had the required information.

In response I received a letter from another senior analyst, who informed me that the department first tries to notify the business of the complaint and give it the chance to explain why the call was not really a violation. But even if it is a violation, "one complaint may not establish that the business is not in compliance. Normally, it's the volume of complaints that helps determine whether legal action is taken."

How many does it take? I have had uncounted calls each week for the past six months and filed only two complaints. I would say if even one person files a complaint, it means hundreds or thousands of us got the same calls, but didn't complain.

I mean, life is short.

So, I'm thinking about taking a more drastic step.

Canceling my phone service.

Verizon, are you listening?

And I'm not the only one.

Two friends at the gym were talking about calls offering the same Las Vegas trip (gee, maybe we could all have gone together!) and another call offering a free cruise. (I got that one, too. FYI telemarketers: I would pay to not have to go to Las Vegas or take a cruise.)

Why even have a home phone, my friends said. We all have cell phones with free long distance.

It used to be such a personal thing, the home telephone. If you lived in a place long enough, your telephone number became almost a part of your identity. I know by heart the numbers of friends in New York 35 years ago. I can still remember my home phone number in suburban Chicago when I was a kid. And the excitement of the phone ringing - who would it be?

But in those days when the phone rang, it meant someone who knew you was calling.

Sandra Thompson, a Tampa writer, can be reached at sandrathompson1@mac.com City Life appears on Saturday.

[Last modified September 24, 2005, 01:17:15]