To be irritated beyond belief at this persistant cold caller

[alicet]

Tonight I was phoned up by a woman from a company I had never heard of asking if she could ask me a few questions. I was busy and so I told her I didn't have time. When she then persisted I reiterated that I didn't have time. When she STILL persisted I put the phone down as she obviously wasn't listening to me and I didn't have the time or inclincation to explain further when I though I had already been more than clear. Was a bit annoyed but had other things on my mind so forgot about it.

About an hour later she calls again. When she asked if I could answer the questions I said to her again that I didn't have the time. Then she asked when she could call back. I said 'actually I have a baby due in a week and a toddler so I'm not going to have the time to answer your questions' at which point she said 'Friday morning?' So very very nearly lost my rag - I mean how much clearer could I have been? I said 'I DON'T have the time' and put the phone down.

I was left seething! I know she probably has targets to meet and is only doing her job but to be fair thats not my problem. We are signed up to the telephone preference service and I always tick / untick the relevant boxes about not wanting to be contacted. And although I was probably a bit firm and abrupt with her I was never rude or raised my voice - actually by being upfront I consider that I am stopping her wasting her time on me when she could get off the line and call someone who might actually have the time to help her.

I think if she calls on Friday morning I really will lose my rag!

So AIBU?

Betty no she was from something foods - didn't pay attention to the company name once I had established that I'd never heard of them!

is it really rude to just put the phone down ?

We get loads of cold calls even though we are registered with TPS and ex-directory.

I will try some of these tips next time. sixlostmonkeys I like your style

You really need to have fun with these people. Sod ignoring them - if you do that, you just get wound up because they keep calling. I now have 2 approaches (I know, I need to get out more !) (1) As soon as you answer the phone, before they can speak (only relevant if you have caller ID and you know it's them) say "Can I speak to John please?" Most of them get so confused about who called who, that they end up telling you that they think you've got the wrong number, and then they hang up ! (2) and this is my particular favourite, as soon as you hear it's them, blow a whistly really loudly down the phone ! I've done this a couple of times - and they never ring back ! (btw, I only use this one for persistant offenders !)

I am self employed and one of the ways I get work in is by cold calling potential customers...
I do only contact businesses though, but would be very upset if anyone had fun with me when I was just trying to earn a crust.
If people are polite and say 'no thanks' then I cheerfully say sorry for bothering them and goodbye.
Cold calling is the worst job in the world and now that I have had to do it myself I will never ever be rude to or have fun with anyone who cold calls.

What about someone who cold calls 10 times a week and gets aggressive if you say you're not interested - because that is what winds most folks up, not someone who calls once and takes no thanks for an answer.

The first time the window company calls, you say no. The 2nd time, you say that you already said no. The 3rd time you say stop calling me. By the time you've got to 10, you are actually inventing new obscenities!

Flibberty - I have also done this job - hence my comment about repeat offenders. I think we are all more than capable of being polite for a few instances, but when you get the same caller 10 times in a week, then they are asking for trouble !

I had a cold caller once call me and he spoke so fast on the phone. I told him i couldn't talk and he could here my baby crying but he kept saying 'oh it will only take 5 minutes.' I put the phone down.

Why do they always talk so fast, is it so you miss something important like hidden charges?

And what is it when you have a baby people trying to sell you life insurance? Because they can make you feel guilty?

I got fed up with a cold caller when a double glazing salesperson called to see if we wanted windows, when I said that "actually we do need a few replacing when can you come out?" Firstly she was gobsmacked that I was actually interested and hadn't put the phone down on her but then she refused to arrange for someone to come out unless dh was going to be there with me as in her words "women often arrange these appointments without their husbands consent and it is pointless sending out a sales rep unless the husband is there to discuss the financial matters". I was furious and told her not to bother but what really annoyed me is that she kept ringing back asking to speak to dh because she wanted to discuss it with him!

imagineafullnightsleep: be careful with blowing a whistle down the phone - it can actually permanently deafen. I wouldn't have any problem with that for regular obscene phone calls or threatening calls, but for a sales person who is only doing their job that's rather unpleasant.

YANBU - if she calls on friday ask to speak to her supervisor.

This sort of thing really annoys me, i do not have a phone in order for random companies to disturb my time. What annoys me even more is getting calls from my bank that when I PICK UP the phone i am then told to press xy and z and then after all that when i try and speak to someone, what do i get - "all our operators are currently busy, please call back at a less busy time" THEY FUCKING PHONED ME .

We are ex directory and registered with the thingy that means you can't get random calls but the odd few slip by, i just say i'm not interested, goodbye before they even get chance to finish their first sentence. Rude? I dont think so, not as rude as disturbing my free time, disturbing my routine, disturbing my baby!

Then you have door to door sales - this is even fecking worse, had a woman at more door yesterday, or should i say, trying to knock it down. She bashed so hard on the door that i was planning to say, oi, you bastard, youve just woken my baby, but then i thought, well if i had this shitty god awful job my life would be shit enough without getting greif so i just said no thankyou and shut the door. I think she was from the leccy people. FFS

I have a debt collection agency which persisitently calls our house looking for a Mr X who happens to have the same surname as us (quite common). I have told them at least five times that we dont know him and he has never lived at this address, hell, I've offered to let them come and search the place. I eventually lost my temper and said I would report them to the police for harrassment if they didnt give it up and amend their records. Not heard back from them as yet..

A while back I was in the middle of a hellish place called 'laying laminate flooring'
I'd been struggling for hours, I ached, I was frustrated, I didn't seem to be getting anywhere.
There was a knock at the door. I had to stop what I was doing clamber over power tools, benches, piles of laminate to get to the door.
"hello madam, we are here to spread the word of Jesus"
"He was a carpenter right?"
"Yes"
"Well, send him round here to do this bloomin laminate flooring and if he does a good job I'll go round spreading the word for you!"

DH once asked for information about an outdoor canopy. We had persistent calls asking when we were going to buy/install it - I asked them to remove my name from the list and said that we would contact them if we wanted to go ahead. The guy said, "we'll phone you in three months then." I asked him which part of "take me of the list and we'll phone you" he didn't understand. He laughed and said again they would phone. I e-mailed the company giving details of the conversation and they said they would remove me from the list.... I got another call. I e-mailed the company again saying that I would never use their company because why would I use a company where the staff cannot follow the simplest of instructions not to call. We never heard from them again, thank goodness!

For normal cold calls - I just immediately say: I'm not interested, thank you very much, goodbye. If they persist I tell them that I never buy from companies which cold call. That usually gets rid of them.

this is how to deal with cold callers

(Warning- you may not want to open this link if your dc are listening)

Thanks for all your help ladies! And all the laughs you have given me about how to deal with this!

Well she didn't call so obviously got the message!!!! Got some good ideas for how to deal with the next one though - thanks ladies!

twice this week i have said that the lady of the house is not at home ,i am only the cleaner

I keep getting called by a company in india working for a well known mobile phone operator. They keep asking for my husband (EVERY DAY!) and I always say he's not in. they ask me when he'll be in. i say i dont know. That happens all the time. Husband refuses to talk to them! The other day they asked me who i was and i told them. they then tried to get us to upgrade the phone and were told that if we didnt, our contract would be cancelled! it went on for ages and i told them unless they could post me whatever offer they were giving, im not interested. They were going on and on and i was disagreeing with everything they said. The man then said to me "Dont you think youre talking too much?" to which i replied "Excuse me?" he then repeated him self and i said excuse me again. In the end he asked me a third time to which i replied "HELL NO!" and hung up. The cheek of it (i did find it funny tho as i was trying my best to rub him up the wrong way - now he knows how it feels!).

They still call every day tho! and sometimes when they hear my voice they hang up! By the way im registered with the telephone preference service too!

Liza - that is hilarious!!!