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Original poster

To think calls like this should be illegal?

69 replies

listsandbudgets · 10/03/2016 11:09

I've just had a call that went along these lines

"Hello Lists, sorry to disturb you. My name is Tracey and I work for xyz company. I'm responsible for closing down the files related to your road accident and wanted to go over a few details with you before we issued the final compensation cheque"

What the hell... presumably she was going to go n to ask me all sort of questions that would allow her to steal my identity. I've never even had a road accident and god willing never will

OP posts:
ThePebbleCollector · 10/03/2016 12:35

My dad got taken in by one of these (but not an accident type one), I'd spent a couple of years encouraging him to get online, finally did and he was really enjoying himself. I thought I'd pretty much covered all safety points but then some people called and managed to get him to do all sorts of stuff on the computer that risked his security.

I managed to fix it all and block everything they got access to but now he won't even switch the computer on because of it all. Shame because he's a widower who rarely goes out.

All these dodgy call centres really fuck me off they do.

ThePebbleCollector · 10/03/2016 12:36

He was only on the computer for a week too. Bloody waste.

ClopySow · 10/03/2016 12:39

I'm going to start singing Adele at them.

bimandbam · 10/03/2016 12:39

My ds (2.3) loves talking on the phone so I pass it him usually.

Failing that I tell them I work from home giving advice over the phone and if they wish to continue it costs £55 per hour plus vat to speak to me so I will need a debit/credit cars number to proceed.

If I can be bothered. Sometimes I just say no thank you and hang up.

ThePebbleCollector · 10/03/2016 12:42

My OH always speaks to them in different accents, gets all the way through all the injuries he sustained.... then says "But there's a problem, the car wasn't mine!" they tell him it's fine ...etc...etc and who's was it. Then he says "I don't know, I knicked it!" He's usually wasted about 10 mins of their time by then, sometimes he even gets put through to a supervisor :D

Lynnm63 · 10/03/2016 12:49

I get a few it's always when I'm either cooking dinner or settling down to watch something. Last night one called just as I was about to watch the last episode of white collar and I got VERY cross. He asked if I'd had an accident and I told him "I've not had an accident but you've interrupted my ogling Matt Bomer so if you call me back in the hour you'll have one." My DH was Shock.
One before that I asked "who is this please, how did you get this number as its a secure line at the Serious Fraud Office. I need your details for security." She said "I'll just get my supervisor" and hung up. I didn't get a call for a few weeks after that.

nancy75 · 10/03/2016 13:00

My Dad takes great delight in talking to these people and making up ridiculous accidents. So Far he has flown a light aircraft in to the Dartford tunnel and driven his car in to a lake, strangely they never really know what to say to that

Trollicking · 10/03/2016 13:05

You should ALWAYS report unwanted calls or text to OFCOM They can and do prosecute people and companies for making these calls. It's really simple and only takes a few minutes.

Also, I would be careful about return texts to numbers who have sent spam texts. I'd just report them then block them.

diddl · 10/03/2016 13:11

So you haven't actually had an accident, OP?

ChaostheCat · 10/03/2016 13:16

I have been known to respond with "but it wasn't an accident....." They hang up 😬

stumblymonkey · 10/03/2016 13:31

I had one of these calls and it went like this...

Them: Hi Stumbly, we're calling about your road traffic accident and how you can claim...

Me: I've never had a road traffic accident

Them: Oh, it says on your records that you have.

Me: Well then your records are completely wrong.

Them: Well, has anyone in your household had an accident then?

Me: Yes.

Them (sounding thrilled): Oh...who was that?

Me: My cat

Them (obviously misheard in their excitement): "Oh...and were they a passenger at the time"

Me: "Ummm....no. They were hit by a car"

Them (sounding even more thrilled): "Oh right...were they in another car? Did they have a seatbelt on at the time?"

Me: "Cats don't wear seat belts"

They realised then that I was talking about DCat and said I was sick. I said it was all true DCat injured their leg in an RTA last year and that actually, calling households and invading their privacy with stupid questions about car accidents was sick.

They hung up on me. I had a very self satisfied cup of tea and a chuckle.

GastonsPomPomWrath · 10/03/2016 13:41

I get the "we're calling about your recent accident" ones all the time. I don't even have a drivers license Hmm

Husband had one recently. Kept the chap going for ages about what year the accident happened and how he'd hurt his neck from the shunt etc. When the lad asked him about the car, he said "yes it was car number 5."
"car number 5?"
"yes number 5. Bumper car number 5 at Busters bloody funfair."
"Ohhh. I see."
"Yes, you waste my time and I'll waste yours. Do not call me again."

specialsubject · 10/03/2016 17:13

the reason this is such a pain as that by the time you get to the phone to see that it is a scammer, it has already rung. If you are waiting for THAT call about a dying relative, it is something you really don't need. Especially as it is often a recorded message so there isn't even some crook to scream at.

'with held' is tricky as plenty of legit people use that. 'unavailable' is ALWAYS a scammer as legit international numbers now show up.

I love my £18 ebay call blocker. The plague of unavailable recorded messages has totally stopped. Sadly after I got THAT call.

WhiskyTangoFoxtrot · 10/03/2016 17:25

I pretend to a switchboard operator

"oK, but you'll need to give me the name of the person so I can put you though"

"I can't do that, data protection"

"So how can I connect you to the right person?"

"What are you on about?"

"I just need to know who you want to speak to, I cannot put you through to the right extension unless I know who you want. Or extension number will do"

(by this time they're usually talking over me in sheer frustration)

"Why are you being so difficult?"

"No difficulty if you can just give me a name of extension number"

Repeat, for as long as possible, to tie up as much of their time as possible.

Puzzledandpissedoff · 10/03/2016 17:44

I don't mind the usual sales calls - I ask them for their card details since I charge £2 a minute for my time Grin

However the claims pusher who called ages ago actually started with "I'm calling about an accident your husband was involved in ..." ExH was out, and for a heart-stopping moment I honestly thought it was the police and that he'd been hurt

Bastards

ApollO88 · 10/03/2016 17:52

I get these daily after I actually had an accident last year. My response will vary depending on my mood. Sometimes I go along with it listen sweetly, answer all the questions politely, then I turn all sweary and say it wasn't an accident and next time I'll run the bastard off the road (FYI I was knocked off my motorbike) sometimes I'll just say hang on a sec I need to dry my hands then I'll put the phone on the side and wait to see how long it takes them to realise I'm not coming back.

ApollO88 · 10/03/2016 17:53

I'm looking forward to the day my contract ends and Ivan change my number

Germgirl · 10/03/2016 17:54

I usually say 'accident?! Oh my god! Was I killed?'
This confuses them for long enough for me to be able to put the phone down on them.

partialderivative · 10/03/2016 17:54

"Ah, you'll be wanting to talk to my arse dept"

If you can muster a fart, all the better

IPityThePontipines · 10/03/2016 17:58

Pebble That's such a shame about your dad. People underestimate the harm scamsters can do.

The last time an accident company called me, I told them my car had been hit by aliens. They couldn't get off the phone quick enough.

Trollicking · 10/03/2016 18:05

The people running these companies don't care about their staff being given grief by the people they call so the best thing to do is to report the companies to OFCOM and hope they get fined.

prettybird · 10/03/2016 18:13

I've given up trying to report them to Ofcom/TPS/Data Protection as usually they've spoofed the nbet, so I just get an anodyne reply saying that there's nothing they can do Angry

I just put the phone down now. Don't even say Goodbye. The one that irritated me recently was the one from a lady who said she wanted to talk to my husband about his pension options and then said she had to gear from him that he wasn't interested, as he was in the same room.

Next thing she heard was the dial tone Grin

quietbatperson · 10/03/2016 20:22

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

TheDuchessOfArbroathsHat · 10/03/2016 20:29

Some time ago on here there was a brilliant 'script' for dealing with these - something about pretending the caller had got through to the Forensics Officer at a triple murder site - it went into quite some detail the finer points of which escape me now - anyone else remember that? Funny as fuck it was Grin

kelper · 10/03/2016 20:32

I love the PPI calls, mainly because I already claimed my PPI and got £8000 without a company being involved. So when they say they can get me £1500 I'm a little disappointed ;)