At about 8:45 last night I had a phone call, the usual blurb "hello my names such and such calling from the RSPCA ......."

I stopped the guy there, and told him I wouldnt be donating any money to the RSPCA because I didnt believe their money went to the right places and didnt really approve of some of their practices.  Anyway this guy who sounded like a young lad said to me "well to be honest I totally agree with you" he went on to say what a bunch of t**sers and w***ers (his words not mine) the RSPCA are and that all the top bods get paid loads and the dont care about the animals he actually had me in absolute fits, I just could believe what this guy was saying and he works for the company :D :D

He then bid me a good evening and put the phone down :p

Just goes to show even people who work for the RSPCA dont agree with what they do :D

Claire :)

I hope he doesn't find out that "telephone calls are monitored for training purposes"

:D :D

maybe the caller was a dodgy call not even from the rspca maybe he just wanted ur bank details 2 rip u off it happens

I think I'd have to agree with redstaffy - these calls do happen to the point that I absolutely refuse to give any details over the phone, even if they say they are from BT - you just can't be too careful :-)

Would be funny though if it was genuine as it has probably be listened to in a training class - 'how not to get money donated and lose your job in five seconds' kind of training :D

Do you know I didnt even think that it might be a dodgy call, I get so many sales calls I just assumed it was for real.

Yep, and if they manage to get one set of details out of every 10/20/30 calls they make, they're quids in before anyone even realises whats happened

I'd imagine that he really isn't from the RSPCA at all.

just reading this has reminded me of a phonecall i recieved awhile back from Sky offering me insurance against my dish and box. well i was rather busy at the time so i said could you pls post me the details etc and i will have a read. funny that was about 4 mths ago now and i still havent recieved anything. so glad i didnt take them up on their offer as it doesnt look like it was genuine.

It could have been a guenuine call. Many charities employ telesales agencies to do their cold-calling for them so the people employed to make the calls won't necessarily support the charity they are calling on behalf of. It's like those people who ambush you on street corners to sign you up to make direct debits to various charities. They may be representing Oxfam one day, Save the Children the next etc...etc...

As for the Sky people not getting in contact again - usually these people work on commission so if they can't persuade you to sign up, they have nothing to gain by sending you out the details so probably just couldn't be bothered!

I am going to run and hide after I have said this, but my sister has recently changd jobs, but her old job was to be one of these annoying callers getting you to do this that and the other.

One day she would be ringing Vodafone customers to ask them to give feedback on their services, the next day she would be rining for a catalogue store to see if they wanted the new spring/summer catalogue, etc.

There is a list you can put your name on, and you will never be contacted by these agents, I have forgotten what it is called now, but if you ever did get a phone call from them, they get fined as it is against the law. I think I might get the details from her, Onetel have been ringing all week to get me to sign up to their phone service, they have already rang 3 times today.... and they are cheeky bu**ers, I lost my rag with them yesterday and said, "I do NOT want to sign up with you, please remove my name and number from your list" and they put the phone down on me, sure enough 1/2 an hour later they rang again!!! :rolleyes:

Telephone Preference Service.

That's the one, thanks JG :D

Edited to add: I have registeed, it is going to take upto 28 days for them to stop ringing I think I wil be unplugging the phone before then!!! :D

In the meantime, when they call just say "Do you realise this number is registered with the Telephone Preference Service? Can I have your name?" and they'll hang up immediately! :D I've found the system to be very effective - it's very rare that I get such a call now, maybe one or two a year.

When my sister first told me about it, I remembered the name for a few weeks and told the callers I was a member (when I wasn't ) but then I forgot the name - I have a memory like a sieve!! :rolleyes: I will write it next to the phone this time!! :D

My phone is ex-directory and does not accept calls from witheld numbers. We never get sales calls now :D

We don't normally pick up any calls that come through with no number, but we are having a fight (a proper punch up!!! ;) ) with PayPal at the moment, and I am STILL waiting for their call so I have to pick it up! :D

I hear a lot of people say they don't answer their phones if it's number with held, and it always worries me, as working in a hospital I know how important that call could be. All our calls from the hospital are number with held, so I always answer my phone at home in case it was about someone having been in an accident!

Having said that Im pretty lucky in that we don't get calls from sales people - don't know why.  They must have a list some somewhere that reads:

Bankrupt:  Mr & Mrs Keeley

Oh thanks Keeley, now everytime the phone rings I'll have to ring my hubbie and make sure he is OK :rolleyes: ;) :P LOL

Seriously I hadn't thought of that! Maybe I will just have to pick it up but start being rude back to them and put the phone down!! Trouble is, I have to be very riled before I can be rude!! :rolleyes: :D

LOL Natalie!!  My neice once refused to answer her mobile because it didn't show a number.  She kept hanging up and in the end she gave in to answer her very fed up boyfriend, who was demanding to know why she'd hung up on him so many times!  Oops!

I registered and it worked for a few months but now back to square one.  Does anyone know if your registration can run out?  Keep meaning to do it again but keep forgetting.

Sheltpap, I was told by BT that it was illegal for these people to call you if you have registered on this service. You have to tind out what companes they are from and then report them for doing it. Are you sure the calls are not coming from a computer automatically dialing in sequence? You can get your number changed by BT free if you are receiving nuisance calls.

Sheltpap, your registration doesn't run out - I joined the new BT thing advertised by Clarkson on the telly and it asked me during set up whether I would like to register with TPS so I opted for yes.

I received a letter the other week from TPS saying I was already registered with them and if i have been receiving unwanted sales calls could I send them the details.  I obviously had forgotten doing this and calls were getting through but it means that your registration hasn't run out and if you get any calls, try doing what someone above said by saying "can i have your name, I am registered with TPS" which is what I'm going to try in future, although since registering for the BT thing I haven't had any sales calls at all, hurrah!

It's  <a href= http://www.bt.com/btprivacy/ > BT Privacy</a> and it gives you free caller display too, as well as registering your number with the Telephone Preferenece Service if that is what you want. 

Natalie1212, it is well worth it! I have been on this for a few years now and never get those annoying calls. It doesn't stop the ones where the computer automatically dials the next number in sequence but I could count on one hand the number of those I have had in 4 years. My number is automatically witheld when I dial out as well as being ex-directory so nobody can have my  number unless I give it to them. :-D

I think he was just a student working for a telesales company, made me laugh anyway :D :D

I have registered with the telephone preference agency and it worked for about a month and now they have all started coming in again, im getting bored of telling them they are breaking the law by phoning me all they do is hang up so I cant even get head office details.

They seem to be doing a big "sales drive" at the moment,  teams of canvassers are going round this area at the moment, trying to sign people up on their doorsteps to donate by Direct Debit.  They too don't actually work for the RSPCA, but for a marketing company, but they are wearing T shirts and waitcoat thingys with RSPCA logos.  They don't have a clue about the organisation, just pid for the sign ups, like the annoying door knockers from the Power companies. 

I did get a very strange phone call yesterday - it went like this "Hello is that Dogsworld?"  I said did they mean the newpaper Dog Wrold and caller said, "No, this is the South Londond Press, are you Dogsworld which sells pups?"  I said I most certainly was not, I was a breeder of 2 breeds, and she said "Well, woudl you like to advertise your pups with us.  "  I took a deep breath and said I thought being about 300 miles away from the South London area it might not be a good idea!  Still wondering how she got my number.
bye 
Gwen

I had the RSPCA visit me a couple of years ago and I signed up a DD with them for £5 per month, shortly after I realised I didnt want to pay them that and cancelled my DD THREE times and each time they set it back up again

Now ive changed banks they have no hope :p

I've did exactly the same ClaireyS, I'll have to check my bank account and make sure they haven't set it back up again!

Sounds like a marketing ploy Gwen. I got similar call about my BT phone line only I'm with Telewest :D As soon as I said I wasn't with BT they asked who I was with so I just said no thanks I'm quite happy and hung up.

For a while my phone was going up to a dozen times a day with various companies trying to sell something or the multidial ones where there is no one on the line. They may get a course in hard selling but don't get any training in manners. Lost count of the number of times they have said "Don't you want to save money" when I decline the offer. Now if they ask for the householder I hang up. On the other hand they have to make a living like the rest of us. It's the companies to blame not the bod on the end of the phone

Whoops sorry for the diatribe :D

Anne

the ones that make me chuckle are when they ask for the Home owner as you've been selected for a new kitchen etc. i was renting for a few years and told them sorry i rent, they quickly got off the line. now of course when they ring i am the home owner but still find myself saying sorry i rent after a few mths of that they've not bothered ringing anymore.... i wonder why :D

I always do it the other way, if they are ringing about kitchens - I say I have a new one (well that's isn't a lie actually!!!) But then it is windows, so of course I say I have just had new windows fitted, next it is have you got a consevatory? I say 'yes thanks got a lovely big one stuck on the end of the new kitchen, and it has new windows in it!!!' I have had a few funny lines said but most just give up! :D

If there happens to someone there when I answer the phone, :rolleyes: I often ask them to hold on for a minute, then go shopping or have a nice bath etc, and run up their phone bills :D

what a great idea Liberty, im going to try that the next time I get a call :D

Before we moved house and had to change our phone number we were plagued with sales calls for double glazing (which we had), new kitchens (which we also had) and conservatories (which we didn't have). I used to get rid of the conservatory companies like this....
When they would ask if they could interest me in a conservatory, I would say 'Oh yes! I'd loooove a conservatory (which was true). They would get all enthusiastic and ask if they could send a representative around to discuss my options with me I would reply 'Yes, of course, that would be wonderful..........and if your representative can find somewhere to put a conservatory on my 2 up, 2 down, mid-terrace with a 6x3 yard, I'll happily buy it!!!' For some reason the line would go dead at this point :D

A friend of my sons was asked if he wanted a conservatory. He arranged for the salesman to visit. Salesman arrived, had to climb 3 flights of stairs, was very upset that son's friend hadn't told him he lived at the top of a tenement block! Well, he DID want a conservatory, he just didn't have anywhere to put one ;)

LOL - excellent :D