To have said to woman on phone...

[Happymm]

"You have to be fucking joking me?"

Bloody cold calling at this time of night, when have all 3DC's in the bath finally calm and playing nicely after fighting and falling out for last bloody 3hours, and having the bloody dog barking for attention for similar amount of time. Aaaaaaaaaargh!

Just wanted to sit on floor next to DC's (with nice glass of wine-have had BAD day in my defence) and enjoy next 30mins?

Hope they were recording that one for training purposes! :o

[LordOfTheFlies]

I had someone call me on Easter Sunday at about 8pm. I was bl**ody fuming. I didn't swear but I kept saying: "Do you think it's reasonable to call me at 8pm. Do you ? Do you think it's reasonable to call me on a Sunday.?Easter Sunday? Aren't there laws about the time?"
He didn't get a word in edgeways

Yesterday a lady phoned up about a 'free' holiday.(Oh yes, because they exsist don't they)
"You filled in a survey" she says.
"When" I asked.
"On-line"
"No i haven't" I replied.
"Oh it was on an incoming flight" she said.
" I haven't flown since 1998 " I told her (which is true)

Clutching at flippin straws or what.

[SurreyDad]

Absolutely fine to swear at them - it is reasonable force to protect your privacy. The more people that swear at them, the more likely their employers will have to act to make sure that people who do not want to be disturbed are not disturbed.

[mum0fthree]

I also worked for BT many years ago, I was crap at it but managed to make a living for a couple of years before moving on.

I don't mind cold callers per se, it is easy enough to say no thanks and put the phone down but I am currently being harrassed by a company who insist they just want to do a survey (foreign). They are ringing numerous times of day for 8.00 in the morning. I get a few silent calls and then they answer and ask about the survey.

I joined tps three years ago in the last two months I would say they have phoned me approx 12 - 15 times a week. I have to answer the phone because I do agency work and a polite no thanks is just not working.

This call puts the OP's choice words into perspective.

[SouthStar]

Really no need to swear at them. I always answer the phone then ask them to hold for a sec and just leave the phone on the side....its amazing how long some of them stay on the line!

[deliakate]

I used to work for BT when a student on different campaigns, sometimes cold calling. It was very rare actually that people were rude. It did upset me when it happened, but I probably wasn't cut out for the job in that case.

[LolaRennt]

They're intruding into your house and your privacy. You have every right to be rude. If they don't like someone being rude to them, they should check to see if you're registered with the TPS and see whether or not you withold your number from the phone book before ringing youAnd it is not you who is responsible for swearing at them - it is their employer who is responsible by getting their employees to follow the working practices. These call centres could be prosecuted under Health and Safety law for causing their employees to be exposed to rudeness and stress by making them telephone people who do not want to be called.

What a crock of shit, I love that some people have no concept of personal responibility. Its someone elses fault if they dont like that I am rude to them!

[upsylazy]

highsummer much as I detest these calls, I don't think you can really compare arms trading or torturing animals with trying to flog double glazing or conservatory blinds. I agree that 6.30 isn't late but I find it the most annoying time to be called as I'm in the middle of cooking dinner/bathing toddler/nagging about homework/refereeing fights etc. Has anyone here ever bought anything as a result of a cold call? i know I haven't and I don't know anyone who ever has. I presume some people must or they wouldn't bother doing it.

[melikalikimaka]

No need to fucking swear!

[charliejosh]

YANBU - tea time in MOST households so therefore it is the company being rude by interrupting family time!

[LeaveYourDignityAtTheDoor]

When I used to get cold calls I would pass the phone to my then 5yr old DS who would drone on about Thomas the Tank Engine or Spongebob until they hung up.

3yrs down the line and I think I have had 4 cold calls in that time.

[SchrodingersMew]

SurreyDad They don't need to check if you withhold your number from the phone book. This is where lots of people get it wrong, many people will say over the phone "you shouldn't be calling me, I'm ex directory" but this doesn't make a difference.

You must be registered with the TPS for it to make any difference, and it's not a case of them checking. It's not their job to do that and they can't do that. It's the actual companies job to check if you are okay to call.

[redwineformethanks]

These people are working anti social hours for a low wage. Unacceptable to swear at them.

[acatcalledbob]

YABU to have sworn, YABVU to come to Mumsnet and complain about it when you are in the middle of a bedtime routine and don't have the time to take a phonecall without swearing....

[Vicky2011]

YABU to have sworn, I have only done that once and is was where some foreigner was trying to persuade me I had won a prize and needed all my personal data to ensure that I was the right person. He DID get told he was a "fucking shyster". Normal run of the mill calls get a simple "not now, sorry'.
I admit I find the silent calls way more annoying than the ones when there is actually someone there.

[nooka]

Being a cold caller might be a crap job, I'm sure it is, but I really don't think that there is any excuse for ringing people in their own homes and then expecting them to be pleasant about being disturbed. Why should people be polite? I'm very rarely a swearer personally, but actually I don't think that it is uncalled for. 'it's just a job' seems a bit close to following orders to me, no one is obliged to be a cold caller.

It's a shitty thing to be doing trying to con people into buying stuff they don't want when they are vulnerable at home, and the idea that people now can't pick up the phone in their own home for fear of it being an unwanted caller is a gross invasion of privacy.

[SurreyDad]

They're intruding into your house and your privacy. You have every right to be rude. If they don't like someone being rude to them, they should check to see if you're registered with the TPS and see whether or not you withold your number from the phone book before ringing you.

And it is not you who is responsible for swearing at them - it is their employer who is responsible by getting their employees to follow the working practices. These call centres could be prosecuted under Health and Safety law for causing their employees to be exposed to rudeness and stress by making them telephone people who do not want to be called.

[thumbwitch]

YANBU to be annoyed, although 6:30 is really not that bad a time - 8:30 was fucking irritating!

But yes, you shouldn't have sworn at her. Switch the ringer off if it annoys you when it rings at that hour in the early evening.

[SurreyDad]

TPS should include barring these calls. The person in the call centre should be thick skinned enough to take some verbal abuse. Its not like they're dealing face to face with someone in a shop, is it?

[LolaRennt]

YABU, no one wants to be a telemarketer honestly. It is soul destroying, you do it because you have to do it. People like you are the reason it is soul destroying. And btw 6:30 "this time of night" what time would be appropriate? 2pm (kids are napping) 5pm (oh dear middle of dinner) well you see where I am going here

[outnumbered2to1]

after having the same overseas telesales company phone me 4 times in two hours while i was waiting to hear from the hospital about my terminally ill aunt i will admit on the 4th call i got very very rude. So rude in fact that the rough, hairy glaswegian burried deep within my psyche came out to play and used language that i haven't used since i was 18 years old.

I slammed the phone handset down so hard i broke it.

Twenty minutes later i got a call from the call centre supervisor telling me not to be so rude to her staff....... can you imagine what i said i to her????

[SurreyDad]

I just politely ask to be put through to their supervisor, ask for the supervisor's name, then threaten to get their details of where they live off the NHS database that everybody is on so I can harass them, then become rude and abusive until they threaten to put the phone down on me!

[curtaincall]

How to get someone off your phone without being rude:

Cold caller: Would you like/can I tell you about/great offer etc....

Me: well the bad news is I don't have any money; the good news is I have just found Jesus and would love to tell you all about him.

[mumeeee]

YABA it was only 6.30 and she was just doing her job. DD2 did a Telesales job last sumner. She didn't like it but was the only job she could get. Yes she felt guilty of calling people and was actually pulled up for spending to much time listening to people rather than trying to sell to them.

[shakey1500]

hugglymuggly they are doing their job. You can be polite and STILL decline any offers. Swearing at them is rude and uncalled for.