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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Random 'I understand You've Been Involved In A Car Accident' Phone Calls

92 replies

SuzieSunshine · 17/09/2019 20:41

I have started getting these calls again and apart from blocking the numbers I'm not sure how to stop them. I now start off by saying 'give me the details then' and have got as far as being told it was in a Red Vauxhall Cavalier. 1) I haven't got a current licence and 2) I haven't had a car for at least 15 years - where do they get my number from? I'd love to know if anybody is or knows one of these callers and because they end up hanging up on me how do they make a living?

OP posts:

1stmonkey · 17/09/2019 23:24

I get these all the time. I usually go with, "can you hang on a second, just need to turn the oven off..." and then get on with my life while they wait for me to come back. I figure if they want to waste my time i'm happy to waste theirs.

Fuma · 17/09/2019 23:27

I used to get them and I always said that actually the crash was technically my fault but only because there was a bomb on board that would have gone off if my speed was less than 50mph. With a couple of the younger ones I was able to go into some detail but mostly they hung up on me. They don't ring me any more.

howyoulikemenow · 17/09/2019 23:37

I used to work in personal injury claims for RTAs and we were told that police used to sell data... (obviously illegally). Not sure how true it is, or where they get the numbers from when you havent been involved, but often when you have you'll start to get hounded.

RainbowMum11 · 18/09/2019 00:33

I start by asking how they got my number under GDPR - they don't stay on the line long enough to answer.

AwdBovril · 18/09/2019 00:43

I don't drive, never have. Neither does DH. Neither of us have ever been in a car accident. We both enjoy wasting their time by acting dumb, asking "what car", which accident", " where was this", etc... sometimes they swear when they catch on...

twelveeleven · 18/09/2019 00:49

Enroll yourself on the telephone preference service - they legally have to remove you from any lists they may have and NOT CALL YOU!

There was another regulation I think from Ofcom that makes a lot of these calls illegal too..

Although I do still wind them up if and when they call 😇

AllModra · 18/09/2019 01:07

The calls started again a few weeks ago and occur most days, and sometimes multiple times in a day. I don't know how or why it's happening again.

Dhalandchips · 18/09/2019 01:10

I tell them they're better than this and to get a proper job!

dexterslockedintheshedagain · 18/09/2019 03:38

I got one of these at work. My friend answered, and played along saying the accident had left them unable to walk, the wheelchair the hospital gave him had a squeaky wheel and could he claim compensation for this......they hung up pdq!!!

acatcalledjohn · 18/09/2019 08:09

Enroll yourself on the telephone preference service

I start by asking how they got my number under GDPR

The non European ones (so the Indian call centres ringing about car accidents and Miscrosoft) don't give a shit about either of the above.

That's why I waste their time.

ShatnersWig · 18/09/2019 08:12

I feel left out. I have never had any of these types of calls.

OtraCosaMariposa · 18/09/2019 08:13

Random number dialler until someone answers.

Of all the shite jobs which you could possibly do, sitting in a call centre saying "I understand you've been injured in a recent car accident which wasn't your fault" must be right up there with the crap jobs.

leckford · 18/09/2019 08:31

I have had one of these so far, no idea where they got my information from. I just said over and over ‘where was the accident’, they eventually put the phone down. Hopefully now off their list

TheSecretJeven · 18/09/2019 08:52

I had one of these last year. When they parroted their opening line and asked ne to confirm it was true, I asked them if they didn't know? Confused silence then they tried again. I explained that they had rung me and made this assertion, so why did they need me to confirm it, if they had this information already? The third time they restarted the script, I just cut the call.

Haven't had any since 🤔.

sportinguista · 18/09/2019 09:23

I work from home so I have various ways of dealing with these and the Microsoft scammers, mostly I just ask them if they can hold for a minute and then I put on my 'hold' music which means I put the phone directly under my computer speakers and put YouTube on. Now I like Slayer and stuff like that so it can get really noisy at full volume - I've only ever had one get to the third song.

DS likes answering and he usually tells them stuff like they are a snail with diabetes or something weird.

The one we liked best was Hassan from Claims Centre who always asked for the head of the household - so we always put him on to DS who was about two and half at the time and toilet training, the best bit was he was chatting away to Hassan about fire engines when he wet himself and just suddenly announced "All wet! all wet!". Hassan didn't call back much after that.

Only once the Microsoft scammers got really angry with me and then even more angry when I kept saying "are you upset dear?" I wonder why...?

I like cold callers - I can have lots of fun with them and really they have nothing better to do do they?

smalalalalalala · 18/09/2019 09:58

Starting to get this kind of call when I use services like Money supermarket or the meerkat one.

That's how they make money. I never pick up if it's a number I don't know and I check online for the number.

smokeytoby · 18/09/2019 12:02

I've just had to claim on my car insurance for something that wasn't my fault, I am bracing myself for these calls to begin any day now as both my mum and dad had cold callers once they claimed on their car insurance.

If the calls come, I now have some good replies! Thanks all, made for a very amusing read this morning x

MrsT1983 · 18/09/2019 12:18

My grandad switches his personal alarm on next to the phone when they call- usually gets rid of them pretty quick!

BazzleJet · 18/09/2019 12:22

I did have an accident which absolutely wasn't my fault so how the f**k do they know? I've realised that's it's usually a recorded message which leaves you just enough time to answer as a normal person would The the next bit of the recording starts. No idea at what point you get a real person.

I did engage in conversation once, they were insistent that I was eligible for compensation due to injury. It's a pain in the neck (see what I did there?)

peachgreen · 18/09/2019 12:28

Most of them are robots, aren't they ? Almost all the ones I've ever had are.

GreenwoodLane · 18/09/2019 13:05

Someone once banged their car door into mine in Lidl car park and I asked to see their cctv. My calls started after this. Thanks Lidl.

Mochame · 18/09/2019 14:35

Couldn’t resist.

Random 'I understand You've Been Involved In A Car Accident' Phone Calls

Mutunus · 18/09/2019 15:38

Never used to get the accident calls until I advertised a damaged car on Gumtree, and 6 months on I still receive 2 or 3 a week.
I guess they must trawl the ads for phone numbers.
The one that really annoys though is from a UK firm calling on the home number about our solar panel servicing. Our home number is ex-directory and is never advertised so where this firm got my details from is a mystery unless British Gas sold my details on!

5foot5 · 18/09/2019 16:03

“I’m so glad you called. I had a terrible accident. Yes, I had a crash on a roundabout and ended up in hospital. I probably shouldn’t have had that fifth glass of wine, but STILL...”

Yes that is similar to the approach I have now adopted. I claim to have taken out a whole bus queue when I was going too fast and wonder if there is anything they can do to help. They usually ring off quite quickly.

blatherskite and backaftera2yearbreak Love the Brexit response I will have to start using that

BarbarAnna · 18/09/2019 16:09

They couldn’t care less about TPS. I read an article about it the other day.

The ones I get are always a dialler. If you answer and don’t say anything, they start having a conversation with themselves and then hang up.

I used to get loads of them. Last month I was involved in a car accident that wasn’t my fault. Not had a single call since!

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