Are You Getting
Telemarketing Calls You Don’t Want?
Here's How to Stop Them
The Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) launched the National Do
Not Call Registry to give Americans a choice
about getting telemarketing calls at home.
According to a recent Harris Interactive
poll,92 percent of people who reported placing
a number on the registry said they are receiving
fewer calls; a total of 78 percent said
they’re getting “far fewer calls”
or none at all.
If you think you
put your number on the National Do Not Call
Registry, and you’re still getting
telemarketing sales calls, the Federal Trade
Commission recommends that you:
Check to see
that your number is on the registry. You
can verify that your number is on the
registry two ways: online at DONOTCALL.GOV
(click on “Verify A Registration”),
or by calling 1-888-382-1222 (TTY 1-866-290-4236)
from the phone number you wish to verify.
Follow the prompts.
You also
can add your number to the registry using
the same Web site or phone number (call
from the number you want to register).
If you register online, you will receive
an email from donotcall.gov
as part of the confirmation process. You
will need to click on the link in this
email within 72 hours after you receive
it. If you don’t click on the link
in the email, the number you tried to
register will not
be added to the registry, and telemarketers
may continue to call.
Understand that
some calls are not covered. Once your
number has been on the registry for three
months, most telemarketing calls will
stop. However, you still may get:
calls from
— or on behalf of — political
organizations, charities, and telephone
surveyors;
calls from
companies with whom you have an existing
business relationship. A company may
call you for 18 months after you make
a purchase or three months after you
submit an inquiry or application;
calls from
companies you’ve given permission
to call.
File a complaint.
If your number has been on the registry
for at least three months, and a telemarketer
calls, complain to the FTC. Visit DONOTCALL.GOV
or call 1-888-382-1222 (TTY1-866-290-4236).
You’ll need to provide the date
of the call and the phone number or name
of the company that called you.
The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive
and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information
to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a
complaint or to get free
information on consumer issues, visit www.ftc.gov
or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The
FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraud-related
complaints into
Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of civil
and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.